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Release Date: September 23, 2008
Release Number: 08-956-CHI
Contact Name: Brad Mitchell or Scott Allen
Phone Number: 312.353.6976

U.S. Labor Department sues First Primary Mortgage Inc. and its trustee for failure to administer employee 401(k) plan

Middleburg Heights, Ohio – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued First Primary Mortgage Inc. of Middleburg Heights, and its owner and the trustee of the First Primary Mortgage Inc. 401(k) Plan, for failure to properly administer the company plan in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

The lawsuit, filed in federal district court in Cleveland, Ohio, alleges that the defendants have failed to take fiduciary responsibility for the operation and administration of the plan since January 2007. As relief, the suit asks the court to remove the company from its position as a fiduciary and permanently bar Sammy D. Quick, who served as the plan’s trustee, from acting as a fiduciary to any ERISA-covered employee benefit plan. Finally, the suit asks the court to appoint an independent fiduciary to terminate the plan and distribute its assets to eligible participants and beneficiaries.

“The Labor Department is committed to protecting workers’ benefits when plan assets are either misused or the plans are abandoned,” said Paul Baumann, acting director of the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) Cincinnati Regional Office.

The suit resulted from an investigation conducted by EBSA’s Cincinnati Regional Office. Employers and workers can reach the office at 859.578.4680 or toll-free at 866.444.3272 for help with problems relating to private sector retirement and health plans. In fiscal year 2007, EBSA achieved monetary results of $1.5 billion related to pension, 401(k), health and other benefits for millions of American workers and their families.

Chao v. Quick
Civil Action Number 1:08-cv-02245

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