29 U.S.C. § 1110
Section 1110 · Exculpatory provisions; insurance
This is § 410 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974
Amended 1 time on record
Applied in 102 court decisions — leading case Pratt v. Petroleum Production Management, Inc. Employee Savings Plan & Trust (1990)
Most recently applied in Harrison v. Envision Management Holding, Inc. Board (February 2023)
Cases citing this section usually also cite 29 U.S.C. § 1132 · 29 U.S.C. § 1002 · 29 U.S.C. § 1104
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
(a) Except as provided in sections 1105(b)(1) and 1105(d) of this title, any provision in an agreement or instrument which purports to relieve a fiduciary from responsibility or liability for any responsibility, obligation, or duty under this part shall be void as against public policy.
(b) Nothing in this subpart 1 shall preclude—
(1) a plan from purchasing insurance for its fiduciaries or for itself to cover liability or losses occurring by reason of the act or omission of a fiduciary, if such insurance permits recourse by the insurer against the fiduciary in the case of a breach of a fiduciary obligation by such fiduciary;
(2) a fiduciary from purchasing insurance to cover liability under this part from and for his own account; or
(3) an employer or an employee organization from purchasing insurance to cover potential liability of one or more persons who serve in a fiduciary capacity with regard to an employee benefit plan.