Remedies available under a qualified plan

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) provides a panoply of remedial devices containing nine civil enforcement provisions in Section 502 (a), which identify potential plaintiffs and available relief. These provisions have been described by the US Supreme Court as an interlocking, interrelated, and interdependent remedial scheme that is part of a comprehensive and reticulated statute. Section 502(a) is designed to be the exclusive remedy for rights under ERISA. As a result, courts are reluctant to imply additional remedies as a matter of common law except to the extent they may be necessary to fill in interstitially or otherwise effectuate the statutory pattern enacted in large by Congress. This article explores the remedies available for the various causes of action created by ERISA.