Rodowicz v. Massachusetts Mutual

Case Date: 09/20/1999
Court: United States Court of Appeals
Docket No: 98-1654

United States Court of Appeals
For the First Circuit




No. 98-1654

STANLEY A. RODOWICZ, ET AL.,

Plaintiffs, Appellants,

v.

MASSACHUSETTS MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, ET AL.,

Defendants, Appellees.




No. 98-1690

STANLEY A. RODOWICZ, ET AL.,

Plaintiffs, Appellees,

v.

MASSACHUSETTS MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, ET AL.,

Defendants, Appellants.




APPEALS FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS

[Hon. Michael Ponsor, U.S. District Judge]




Before

Boudin, Circuit Judge,

Aldrich and Campbell, Senior Circuit Judges.



John C. Sikorski with whom Keith A. Minoff and Robinson,
Donovan, Madden & Barry, P.C. were on brief for plaintiffs.
David G. Cohen with whom Charles S. Cohen and Egan, Flanagan
and Cohen, P.C. were on brief for defendants.





September 15, 1999






CAMPBELL, Senior Circuit Judge. Plaintiffs each retired
from defendant Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company
("MassMutual" or "the Company") under terms that were less
favorable than those in a special offer made to employees soon
after. They filed suit against MassMutual and the Massachusetts
Mutual Voluntary Termination Program ("VTP"), alleging that by
failing to reveal that a more favorable retirement option was
forthcoming, MassMutual violated its fiduciary duties under the
Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA") (codified
at 29 U.S.C.