Court Narrows Earlier Ruling on Brokerage Window Fee Disclosure in Alas v. AT&T
On August 3, 2026, Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California granted AT&T’s motion for reconsideration in the long-running Alas v. AT&T case. The order revised key conclusions from her March 2026 ruling on how indirect compensation tied to the plan’s brokerage window arrangements was disclosed.
The court found that a June 2012 disclosure from AT&T’s recordkeeper, Fidelity Workplace Services, was timely and that disclosing brokerage-window compensation through fee ranges can satisfy Department of Labor regulations under appropriate circumstances.
The March ruling had raised concerns among employers and recordkeepers by suggesting that commonly used brokerage-window disclosures may not comply with ERISA. Trade groups argued that if the decision stood, it could call into question the compliance of virtually every defined contribution plan that offers brokerage-window investments.
Background
The case involves AT&T’s Retirement Savings Plan’s brokerage window, allowing employees to choose investments beyond the plan’s standard investment menu. ERISA regulations impose specific disclosure requirements for compensation received by plan service providers.
As the plan’s recordkeeper, Fidelity receives indirect compensation from funds purchased through the brokerage window. ERISA section 408(b)(2) requires that such arrangements be “reasonable,” which includes providing disclosures sufficient for plan fiduciaries to evaluate that compensation. The plaintiffs argued that Fidelity’s disclosure of a range of rates, rather than fund-by-fund figures, was too vague to satisfy that standard, and the court initially agreed in its March ruling.
Reconsideration and Industry Concerns
AT&T sought reconsideration. In a June 2026 amicus filing, the ERISA Industry Committee, the American Benefits Council, and the SPARK Institute argued that brokerage windows routinely offer thousands of investment options, making investment-by-investment disclosure of indirect compensation impractical. They also warned that the earlier decision could have “seismic adverse implications” for retirement plans, service providers, and participants.
Under the August order, issues remaining for trial include the adequacy of Fidelity’s BrokerageLink disclosures, the reasonableness of compensation associated with BrokerageLink, and related fiduciary-prudence questions.
Sources:
https://www.eric.org/press_release/eric-applauds-court-ruling-in-att-retirement-plan-case/
https://www.americanbenefitscouncil.org/pub/?id=c2ca1dec-b220-8543-09e6-bae2b62f3c2e
https://www.eric.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/ATT_Motion-for-Reconsideration.pdf
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