DOL Hits Pause Button on Fiduciary Rule Appeal 

The Department of Labor (DOL) filed a motion this week in the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, requesting a delay in its appeals regarding two court cases related to the 2024 Retirement Security Rule fiduciary rule. The DOL cited the need for the new administration and agency officials to have time to onboard and familiarize themselves with the cases. 

“To allow new DOL officials sufficient time to become familiar with the issues in these cases and determine how they wish to proceed, the government respectfully moves to place these consolidated appeals in abeyance, with status reports due at 60-day intervals,” the agency said in the motion. 

The appeals were filed in response to two cases. The first was brought by the Federation of Americans for Consumer Choice (FACC) in the Eastern District of Texas. The second case was filed by a group of organizations, including the American Council of Life Insurers, Insured Retirement Institute, National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, and others, in the Northern District of Texas. 

In July, while hearing the case brought by the FACC, Judge Jeremy Kernodle of the U.S. District Court in Tyler, Texas, issued a stay on the rule, just two months before it was set to take effect. 

The Department of Labor (DOL), which has been working on various versions of the fiduciary rule for 15 years, filed a notice to appeal the stays in September.