The Department of Labor obtains judgment to restore funds to employee benefit plans of Trotter Construction Company Inc. in Indianapolis, Ind.

Date of Action: July 20, 2012

Type of Action: Consent order and judgment

Names of Defendants: James H. Trotter, Sr.; Sylvia Trotter; Trotter Construction Company, Inc.; Trotter Development Group NC, LLC, and The Trotter Construction Company, Inc. 401(K) Plan, located in Indianapolis, Ind.

Allegations: Trotter Construction Company, Inc. and Trotter Development Group NC, LLC are owned by James H. Trotter, Sr.  Trotter Construction Company, Inc. sponsored the Trotter Construction Company, Inc. 401(k) Plan, and Trotter Construction Company, Inc. and Trotter Development Group, NC, LLC were the participating employers in welfare benefit plans which provided health, vision and dental benefits to employees of the Trotter Construction Company and the Trotter Development Group NC, LLC in the Trotter Group Health Plans.

For periods from Jan. 1, 2004, through May 15, 2009, defendants James H. Trotter, Sr., Sylvia Trotter, Trotter Construction Company, Inc. and Trotter Development Group, NC, LLC withheld employee contributions and loan repayments from the salaries of employees of Trotter Construction Company, Inc. and Trotter Development Group, NC, LLC, and failed to remit and to timely remit them to the 401(k) Plan.  For periods from Dec. 22, 2008, through Dec. 31, 2009, defendants James H. Trotter, Sr., Trotter Construction Company, Inc. and Trotter Development Group NC, LLC withheld and failed to remit employee premium contributions to the Trotter Group Health Plans. 

During the course of the investigation, the defendants restored $16,705.99 to Trotter Construction Company, Inc. 401(K) Plan participants and $3,161.28 to participants of the Trotter Group Health Plans.

Resolution: The court ordered the defendants to restore an additional $269.28 in lost opportunity costs to participants of the Trotter Construction Company, Inc. 401(k) Plan; and an additional $19,236.33 to the Trotter Health Plans for the welfare benefit plan premiums that had been withheld from participants’ payroll but had not been remitted to the plan providers, and lost opportunity costs on those premiums.  The court ordered that James H. Trotter, Sr. and Sylvia Trotter are permanently enjoined from serving or acting as fiduciaries or service providers with respect to any employee benefit plan subject to the Employment Retirement Income Security Act.

Court: United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis, Ind.
Docket Number: 1:11-cv-00881

U.S. Department of Labor materials are accessible at www.dol.gov.  The information above is available in large print, Braille, audio tape or disc from the COAST office upon request by calling 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755.