DOL Files Suit for Failure to Remit Retirement Plan Contributions

The Department of Labor (DOL) has filed two lawsuits against two defunct Maryland companies for failure to remit employer and employee contributions to their 401(k)s.

Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su filed a lawsuit on Jan. 8 after an investigation by the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) found Elkridge, Maryland-based Jones Dykstra and Associates, a computer forensics company, violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

Specifically, it alleges that co-owners and fiduciaries Keith Jones and Bryan E. Dykstra failed to remit $43,894.76 in participant and employer contributions to the company’s 401(k) profit-sharing plan from January 2016 through 2021.  

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, the complaint seeks restoration of all plan losses, including interest and lost opportunity earnings, removal, and fiduciary bar, the appointment of an independent fiduciary paid for by the defendants, and preservation of all books and records relating to finances and administration of the company and plan.

“Under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, fiduciaries must act with prudence and undivided loyalty to plan participants and refrain from engaging in the sort of prohibited actions alleged here,” EBSA Regional Director Cristina O’Brien said in a statement.

Su also filed suit against payroll processing company Leach-Bard, alleging it failed to remit $192,511 in participant and employer contributions to the company’s 401(k) plan from January 2014 through August 2023. They also failed to process requests for participant distributions and rollovers in violation of ERISA.

The suit seeks restoration of all plan losses, including lost opportunity earnings, delinquent employee contributions of $175,902, delinquent employer contributions of $16,609, and lost opportunity earnings of $59,858.

It additionally seeks removal and a fiduciary bar, appointment of an independent fiduciary paid for by the defendants, and preservation of all books and records relating to finances and administration of the company and plan.

“Failing to forward employee and employer contributions to company 401(k) plans violates employees’ trust and denies workers the opportunity to earn interest on their investments and prepare for their future,” ERISA Deputy Regional Director Norman Jackson said.