Carey v. International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 363 Pension Plan, 1999 U.S. App. LEXIS 32699 (2nd Cir. December 16, 1999) - This court affirmed the district court’s granting of defendant's motion for summary judgment on the ground that John Carey’s claim for pension benefits under 29 U.S.C. § 1132(a)(1)(B) was time barred by a six year statute of limitations. Carey argued that the District Court erred in concluding that his claim accrued in November 1991 (when he received a denial letter in response to informal inquiries) rather than in April 1997, when his first and only formal application for pension benefits was denied.
Under the terms of the Plan agreement, a beneficiary forfeited any pension service credits that had not vested if he incurred a "break in service," defined as three consecutive years with fewer than 500 hours of service. Before this court, Carey asserted that his "break in service" did not disqualify him from a pension because he feel under an exception allowing breaks in service due to a lack of available work.
However, the initial and determinative question was accrual of the statute of limitations. Citing cases from other circuits, this court found that a claim for pensions benefits under 29 U.S.C. § 1132(a)(1)(B) accrues upon a clear repudiation by a plan that is known, or should be known, to the plaintiff regardless of whether the plaintiff has filed a formal application for benefits. This court found no merit in Carey’s policy arguments, nor his assertion that under 29 U.S.C. § 1132(a)(1)(B), an action for present benefits is treated differently for accrual purposes than a declaratory judgment action with respect to future benefits.
