HURD v. ROSS, 1999 U.S. App. LEXIS 22718 (9th Cir. September 9, 1999)- Appellants Richard Hurd and Ronald Snow, participants in the Volunteer Employees Beneficiary Ass’n for Employees of Indep. Elec. Supply, Inc. ("the Plan"), brought suit against the Plan’s trustee, Trust Services of America, claiming breach of fiduciary duty. The district court was correct in finding no breach, because TSA could only act at the direction of the Plan Administrator with regard to the Plan’s assets (and therefore had no discretionary authority to abuse). TSA had been directed to purchase insurance products, which involved paying a commission to Stephen Ross, an insurance broker who was also a general partner of Pacific Executive Services—an interested party. This court remanded on the issue of whether the commissions were "plan assets."
