US Labor Department sues defunct Cranbury, NJ, company to protect 401(k) plan participants

CRANBURY, N.J. – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit seeking the appointment of an independent fiduciary to oversee the abandoned 401(k) plan of defunct International Business Software Solutions, a company formerly located in Cranbury. The plan covered 31 participants and had $344,692 in assets as of December 2009, the latest data available.

“We took this action to protect the participants who entrusted their savings to the trustee of the plan,” said Jonathan Kay, regional director of the Labor Department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration in New York. “Employers and individuals appointed as plan trustees have a legal obligation to properly manage retirement plans when a company goes out of business.”

The trustee of the International Business Software Solutions 401(k) plan abandoned it and relocated outside the U.S. once the company ceased operations in 2008. Since that time, the company and trustee have not taken responsibility for the operation and administration of the plan and its assets. They also failed to appoint anyone to assume that responsibility. As a result, plan participants and beneficiaries have been unable to access their individual account balances.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, seeks to appoint an independent fiduciary to administer the plan and distribute its assets to eligible participants and beneficiaries.

The case was investigated by EBSA’s New York Regional Office. Employers and workers can reach that office at 212-607-8600 or toll-free at 866-444-3272 for help with problems relating to retirement and health benefits. Additional information can be found at http://www.dol.gov/ebsa.

Solis v. International Business Software Solutions 401(k) Plan
Civil Action Number: 3:10-CV-06578

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