Cases—Preemption—ERISA preempts state contract claims

Former employees of US Bancorp had no state contract causes of action against it for pension promises it made, according to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.  The state contract claims were preempted by ERISA as a matter of law.

Plaintiffs argued that during and after a corporate merger, they were promised certain benefits, but Chief Judge Loken affirmed a district court dismissal of the claim, holding that they were not entitled even to discovery on the issue.

Johnson v. U.S. Bancorp, 2004 U.S. App. LEXIS 22679 (8th Cir. Nov. 2, 2004).