Perez v. William Kristen Hathaway, et al., involving default judgment against Baltimore, Md., drug treatment center

Date of Action: April 1, 2014

Type of Action: Default Judgment

Name(s) of Defendant(s): William Kristen Hathaway and the Baltimore Behavioral Health 403(b) plan

Allegations: Based on an investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration, the Secretary of Labor filed a complaint on Nov. 1, 2013, alleging as follows:

William Kristen Hathaway (Hathaway), an officer of Baltimore Behavioral Health (BBH), failed to remit employee contributions to the BBH retirement plan from October 2009 to April 2010.  BBH is a not-for-profit drug treatment center located in Baltimore, Md., that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Dec. 28, 2012. The Labor Department’s investigation found that Hathaway was responsible for making decisions concerning the remittance of elective employee contributions to the Baltimore Behavioral Health 403(b) plan and he was a fiduciary to the plan. The investigation also determined that BBH and Hathaway failed to collect employee contributions and failed to timely remit those contributions.

Resolution: The court entered a default judgment against Hathaway after he failed to plead or assert a defense against the Secretary’s complaint.  The default judgment requires Hathaway to restore to the plan $46,030.07 for unremitted employee contributions; pay $14,720.10 in pre-judgment interest to the plan; and reimburse the plan and the plan administrator for all costs associated with the implementation of the default judgment. The default judgment also removes Hathaway as a fiduciary to this plan and permanently bars him from serving as a fiduciary to any plan governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Court: United States District Court for the District of Maryland

Docket Number: WMN-13-3253

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.