Summary Judgment for Employer in ERISA Case

After removal from state court, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi granted Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff, a former employee of a not-for-profit corporation based in southern Mississippi, sued her former employer alleging that she had not received benefits owed her under the company’s retirement plan. Defendant removed the case from Marion County, Mississippi, arguing that the plaintiff’s claims were preempted by ERISA. The plaintiff attempted remand of the case, while Defendant filed for summary judgment. The Court denied the plaintiff’s motion to remand, and granted summary judgment in favor of the employer. The Court found that the plaintiff’s claims were preempted by ERISA, but that she lacked standing under ERISA to bring the claims alleged within her Complaint. As such, the Court dismissed the case with prejudice. The plaintiff subsequently moved for a rehearing, but her motion was denied.