Opinion ID: 596119
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Introduction; The Parties' Contentions

Text: 37 ERISA's statute of limitations prohibits filing suit more than six years after the date of the last action which constituted a part of the breach or violation, or more than three years after the plaintiff had actual knowledge of the breach or violation, whichever is earlier. See ERISA § 413, 29 U.S.C. § 1113 (1988). 5 Murata amended the Plans on October 25, 1985, and the plaintiffs filed suit on November 25, 1989, well within the six-year period. Therefore, to prevail on its statute of limitations argument, Murata must demonstrate that the plaintiffs had actual knowledge of the breach of fiduciary duty more than three years before they filed suit. 38 Murata argues that the type of ERISA violation that the plaintiffs allege--a breach of fiduciary duty under ERISA § 404, 29 U.S.C. § 1104--does not require that participants be denied benefits to bring suit. Compare Ziegler v Connecticut General Life Ins. Co., 916 F.2d 548, 551 (9th Cir 1990) (ERISA statute of limitations begins to run when actions constituting breach take place and not when actual harm is suffered by the plaintiffs). Therefore, Murata contends, plaintiffs could have brought suit as soon as the Plans were amended. Murata argues that plaintiffs had actual knowledge of the alleged breach because the Company posted notice on October 25, 1985 that the Plan documents had been amended and also informed the union's officers of the amendment. 6 Although the notice merely stated that the Plan documents had been amended and did not mention the content of the amendments, Murata argues that such notice provided the plaintiffs with actual knowledge of the breach of fiduciary duty as plaintiffs define it--an unauthorized, unilateral change in the Plans. Therefore, Murata urges that the statute began to run on the date of amendment, or at least on the date that notice was provided, both of which occurred more than three years before the initiation of this suit. 7 39 The plaintiffs respond that the statute did not begin to run until Murata actually recouped the funds in September 1989. They urge that the breach of fiduciary duty was a series of three acts: the amendment to the plans on October 25, 1985, allowing reversion of the funds to the Company; the termination of the Plans on September 30, 1987; and the actual reversion of the funds to Murata on September 5, 1989. The plaintiffs argue that the statute of limitations did not begin to accrue until the actual reversion three months before suit was actually brought, which was well within the three-year limitations period. 40 The plaintiffs further contend that, even if the breach of fiduciary duty was complete with the amendment of the Plans on October 25, 1985, the statute of limitations still did not begin to run because the plaintiffs lacked actual knowledge of the breach. The plaintiffs point out that there is no evidence suggesting that any of the Plan participants actually knew in 1985 that the Plans had been amended. Moreover, the plaintiffs contend, the notice that Murata did provide could not give rise to a finding of actual knowledge, even if all the plaintiffs had read it, because it did not contain specific notice of the content of the amendment. 41 We must first consider when the breach of fiduciary duty took place, for if the plaintiffs and the district court are correct that the breach was not complete until the recoupment of the funds in 1989, then the suit was timely filed under ERISA § 413, 29 U.S.C. § 1113. 42