ERISA claim stays in state court, which rules for plaintiff

Workplace Issues

By Mark D. DeBofsky

Mark D. DeBofsky is a name partner of DeBofsky Sherman Casciari Reynolds P.C. — on the web at debofsky.com. He handles civil and appellate litigation involving employee benefits, disability insurance and other insurance claims and coverage issues. He can be reached at mdebofsky@debofsky.com

Posted June 3, 2020 11:28 AM

While most ERISA claims are heard in federal court, claims for benefits may also be brought in state court. The ERISA statute provides for concurrent jurisdiction in both the state and federal courts for benefits due under the terms of an employee benefit plan, although ERISA claims filed in state court are removable to federal court.A recent example of an ERISA case decided in a state court is the Illinois Appellate Court decision in Watkins v. M Class Mining Health Prot. Plan, 2020 IL App (5th) 180138; 2020 Ill. App …

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