Opinion ID: 77462
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Governance

Text: 13 ERISA governs employee welfare benefit programs provided by an employer. See 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq. An employee welfare benefit plan governed by ERISA is any plan, fund, or program ... established or maintained by an employer to provide benefits through an insurance policy. 29 U.S.C. § 1002(1); see Donovan v. Dillingham, 688 F.2d 1367, 1371 (11th Cir. 1982). However, no single act in itself necessarily constitutes the establishment of the plan, fund, or program. Donovan, 688 F.2d at 1373. Rather, it is the reality of a plan and not the decision to extend certain benefits that is determinative. Id. An ERISA plan is established if from the surrounding circumstances a reasonable person could ascertain the intended benefits, a class of beneficiaries, the source of financing, and procedures for receiving benefits. Id.