Glossary

ERISA

The 1974 federal law governing most private employer benefit plans, including group life insurance, which sets claim procedures and overrides many state laws.

Also called: Employee Retirement Income Security Act

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) is the federal law that governs most benefit plans offered by private-sector employers, including group life insurance, AD&D, disability and retirement plans. Plans sponsored by government employers and most churches are generally exempt, and individual policies you buy on your own are not covered.

For life insurance, ERISA does three big things. It requires plan administrators to act as fiduciaries and follow the plan documents. It sets a claims and appeals process: a denied claimant must receive a written explanation and can appeal internally before going to court. And it preempts many state laws that relate to employee benefit plans. Hypothetical example: a worker divorces but never removes his ex-wife as beneficiary of his employer group life coverage. A state revocation-on-divorce statute would normally cancel that designation, but the U.S. Supreme Court held in Egelhoff v. Egelhoff (2001) that ERISA preempts such statutes for covered plans, so the plan pays the named ex-spouse.

ERISA lawsuits are typically heard in federal court, often limited to the administrative record, and remedies usually exclude punitive damages. That makes the internal appeal crucial. See Employer life insurance, ERISA and beneficiary disputes and employer group life insurance: what it really covers.

Last reviewed October 4, 2026

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Related terms

Group life insurance Coverage issued under one master contract to members of a group, usually employees, often at one or two times salary with little or no underwriting. Beneficiary designation The signed instruction on file with an insurer naming who receives a policy's proceeds, in what shares and in what order. Revocation-on-divorce statute A state law that automatically cancels an ex-spouse's designation as beneficiary when a marriage ends, unless the owner names them again. Fiduciary A person or firm legally bound to act in someone else's best interest with loyalty and care, such as a trustee, executor or registered investment adviser. Claimant The person or entity that files for a policy's benefits, usually a named beneficiary, executor or assignee after the insured's death.

Related guides

Accidental death claims: why they get disputed Why insurers question accidental death and AD&D claims, from intoxication and illness exclusions to unclear causes, and how to build a stronger claim. How to appeal a denied life insurance claim Steps to challenge a denied death claim: get the denial and claim file, check deadlines, file an internal appeal, complain to the state, and know when to sue. Bad faith claim handling by life insurers What bad faith means for a life insurance claim, how state law and ERISA change your remedies, and what to document if an insurer stalls or denies unfairly. Life insurance beneficiary disputes and interpleader When two people claim one death benefit, insurers file interpleader. How Rule 22 and 28 U.S.C. 1335 work, and what claimants should do. Community property states and life insurance How community property law in nine states can give a spouse a claim to life insurance bought with marital earnings, even when someone else is the beneficiary. Life insurance in nonqualified deferred compensation How employers use company-owned life insurance to informally fund nonqualified deferred compensation, with IRC 409A, 101(j) and 264 rules and creditor risks.