Trustees agree to administer abandoned Warren, Rhode Island 401(k) plan to resolve U.S. Labor Department lawsuit

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Boston – Trustees of defunct VikinGlobal Corp. of Warren, Rhode Island, have agreed to administer the company’s abandoned 401(k) plan to resolve a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Labor alleging violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

The suit, filed October 2007 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, alleged trustees Robert Anderson and Mark Schmidt violated their fiduciary duties under ERISA during the period from October 1, 2002, to the present by failing to take responsibility for the operation and administration of the plan and its assets. Anderson and Schmidt were co-owners of VikinGlobal, the plan’s sponsor until it ceased operations in early 2002. Since then, participants and beneficiaries have been unable to gain access to or obtain information about their individual accounts.

Plans become “orphan plans” when they are abandoned by all fiduciaries designated to manage and administer them. The plan had 13 participants and approximately $12,000 in assets being held by custodian BlackRock Funds.

“The department took this legal action to ensure that the participants receive their promised benefits,” said James Benages, director of the Boston Regional Office of the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA).

The consent judgment obtained by the department bars the defendants from serving in a fiduciary capacity to any ERISA-covered plan other than the VikinGlobal 401(k) Plan for a period of eight years and requires them to distribute the remaining plan assets to the participants and beneficiaries.

This legal action resulted from an investigation conducted by EBSA’s Boston Regional Office. Employers and workers can contact the Boston office at 617.565.9600 or toll-free at 866.444.3272 for help with any problems relating to private sector pension and health plans. In fiscal year 2007, EBSA achieved monetary results of $1.5 billion related to pension, 401(k), health and other benefits for millions of American workers and their families. Additional information can be found at www.dol.gov/ebsa.

Chao v. VikinGlobal Corp.
Civil Action Number: 1:07-CV-00364-S-DLM

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Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.