Close Close
Popular Financial Topics Discover relevant content from across the suite of ALM legal publications From the Industry More content from ThinkAdvisor and select sponsors Investment Advisor Issue Gallery Read digital editions of Investment Advisor Magazine Tax Facts Get clear, current, and reliable answers to pressing tax questions
Luminaries Awards
ThinkAdvisor
Vanguard logo on a laptop computer

Regulation and Compliance > Litigation

Vanguard Reaches Proposed Settlement in Target-Date Sell-Off Case

X
Your article was successfully shared with the contacts you provided.

Vanguard Group has reached a proposed settlement with investors who alleged in a lawsuit  that the giant asset manager caused a costly “elephant stampede” sell-off from its retail target-date funds when it opened institutional funds to more retirement plans.

Vanguard’s move and the resulting sell-off surprised individual customers in taxable accounts with massive capital gains tax bills, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in 2022.

Plaintiffs and defendants notified the court Friday that they have reached a settlement in principle to resolve all claims after a successful mediation. The parties said they need time to negotiate the settlement details.

U.S. District Judge John F. Murphy on Monday ordered all outstanding deadlines in the case stayed pending the parties’ formal agreement to, and court approval of, the proposed settlement.

He also canceled an Oct. 22 hearing on the plaintiffs’ motion to certify a class in the lawsuit. The parties told the court that they plan to seek preliminary approval of the proposed class settlement by Nov. 4.

Vanguard triggered the “unprecedented” sell-off from retail target-date funds when it decided in December 2020 to reduce the minimum investment for retirement plans to participate in its lower-fee, identical institutional target date funds to $5 million from $100 million, the lawsuit alleged.

Vanguard’s retail funds had to sell assets to raise cash to redeem retirement plan shares, resulting in the big capital gains tax bills, according to the suit, which the plaintiffs have pursued as a class action. Normally, target-date funds have minimal capital gains distributions, it noted.

Lead plaintiffs’ attorneys in the case from The Rosen Law Firm had no comment on the proposed settlement. A Vanguard representative didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Bloomberg reported on the proposed settlement Monday.

Image: Bloomberg


NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.