$3.96 Million Arbitration Award Confirmed In Federal Court

Page Perry has obtained the confirmation of the $3.96 million arbitration award that it won for Thomas P. Fitzgerald and has successfully defended against an attempt to vacate that award in federal court.  On June 12, 2008, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan denied the motion to vacate brought by respondents H&R Block Financial Advisers, Inc., (“HRBFA”) and H&R Block, Inc., (“H&R Block”) and granted Mr. Fitzgerald’s motion to confirm the award.

H&R Block and HRBFA contended that this arbitration award was impermissible under ERISA because benefits can only be paid by the Plan Administrator and not by the employer.

In the opinion by the Honorable Gerald E. Rosen, the Court held that, under the limited standard of review of the arbitration award permitted under the law, the Arbitration “Panel may have properly based its decision in whole or in part on [Fitzgerald’s] ERISA claims against HRBFA and H&R Block.”  The Court also held that the arbitration panel may have awarded damages to Fitzgerald on his claims of breach of contract, fraud, illegal retaliation, or civil extortion and permissibly awarded Fitzgerald his attorneys’ fees.

Assuming that the panel awarded benefits under ERISA, the Court held that such an award was supported by the evidence that the employer controlled benefits determinations and paid benefits out of its own assets.