In M&G Polymers USA, LLC v. Tackett, 1 the U.S. Supreme Court overturned three decades of precedent by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, unanimously ruling that, when no specific provision in a collective-bargaining agreement (CBA) addresses the duration of retiree benefits, reviewing courts may not infer that the parties intended those benefits to vest for life. All nine justices agreed that courts must apply “ordinary principles of contract law” to determine the parties’ intent.
Home > Federal Law Articles > Labor Law > General (Labor Law) > U.S. Supreme Court Rejects the Yard-Man Inference Vesting Lifetime Benefits for Union Retirees