US Department of Labor obtains judgment after investigation finds Appleton company failed to forward contributions

GREEN BAY, WI – A federal judge has signed a default judgment against an Appleton company and ordered fiduciaries of the defunct company’s retirement plan to restore $41,869 in employee payroll-deducted retirement contributions and lost opportunity costs to the plan.

The court’s action follows a U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration investigation that found, from January 2016 to September 2019, Pinnacle Machine LLC Chief Operating Officer Donald Miller and his daughter, Jennifer Miller – then Pinnacle’s director of human resources and accounting – failed to forward employee contributions in a timely manner to the Pinnacle Machine Savings & Retirement Plan.

On Aug. 12, U.S. District Court Judge William C. Griesbach signed a default judgment in the case – that also bars the defendants from serving as fiduciaries of an Employee Retirement Income Security Act covered plan in the future – after neither defendant filed an answer to the Secretary’s complaint or otherwise defended themselves. 

“When fiduciaries fail to honor their obligations to the hard-earned retirement savings of participants, the fund’s growth and viability is compromised, putting the future savings of hard-working employees in jeopardy,” said Employee Benefits Security Administration Regional Director Jeffrey Monhart in Chicago. “The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration is committed to ensuring the integrity of employee benefit programs and holding those who violate the law accountable.”

Employers and workers can reach EBSA toll-free at 866-444-3272 for help with problems related to private sector retirement and health plans. Learn more about EBSA.

Pinnacle Machine LLC, Donald Miller, Jennifer Miller, Pinnacle Machine Savings &Retirement Plan, U.S. District Court for Eastern District of Wisconsin, Green Bay, Wisconsin