U.S. Labor Department obtains default judgment against former employee leasing company in Brentwood, Tennessee, to protect workers’ 401(k) assets

Nashville, Tennessee – A federal court in Nashville has issued a default judgment order against Midland Employer Services of Brentwood, Tennessee, to protect 401(k) assets owned by workers at the defunct employee leasing company.

The order, issued by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, removes the defendant from service as fiduciary of the plan and appoints Jeanne Barnes Bryant as an independent fiduciary with responsibility to terminate the plan and distribute its assets to eligible plan participants.

The defendant also is permanently barred from acting as a fiduciary of any plan subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and must pay the cost of the independent fiduciary.

“This case shows the Labor Department’s commitment to ensure that former workers of this company will have access to their retirement assets,” said R.C. Marshall, director of the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) regional office in Atlanta, Ga.

The order stems from a lawsuit filed by EBSA in December 2008 alleging that the company abandoned its plan without terminating its 401(k) plan and distributing its assets when the company ceased operations in 2002.

The Labor Department estimated the plan has assets of $190,134 for the benefit of 25 participants.

In fiscal year 2009, EBSA achieved monetary results of $1.3 billion related to pension, 401(k), health and other benefits for millions of American workers and their families. Employers and workers can reach EBSA’s Atlanta Regional Office at 404.302.3900 or toll-free at 866.444.3272 for help with problems relating to private sector retirement and health plans. For more information, see http://www.dol.gov/ebsa.

Solis v. Midland Employer Services
Civil Action File Number 3:08-cv-01207

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