The Church Plan Debate Continues: Overall v. Ascension Health

Another federal court has weighed in on the question of whether a plan sponsored by a religiously affiliated organization may qualify as a “church plan” within the meaning of Section 3(33) of ERISA.  In Overall v. Ascension Health, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan held that “a plan need not be established by a church in order to qualify as a church plan.”   Read More →

New Jersey Federal Court Rules St. Peter’s Healthcare System Retirement Plan is Not a Church Plan

Many religiously affiliated organizations consider their employee benefit plans to be “church plans” and, therefore, to be exempt from ERISA.  A recent federal court decision now casts some doubt on this position.

In Kaplan v. Saint Peter’s Healthcare System, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey ruled that a defined benefit pension plan established and maintained by a Catholic non-profit healthcare system was not eligible for the church plan exemption. Read More →