Jeffrey Lewis has specialized in ERISA and employee benefits law since 1975.He recently completed a three year term as a representative of the general public on the ERISA Advisory Council to the Secretary of Labor. He has successfully litigated individual, group, and class action claims on behalf of hundreds of thousands of employees, retirees, and the disabled. He was a founding partner of Lewis, Feinberg, Lee & Jackson, one of the first firms in the nation to specialize in ERISA litigation on behalf of plaintiffs. Among his major successes was serving as one of the appointed counsel for employees of WorldCom, Inc. in a class action that resulted in a settlement that paid more than $47 million to participants in WorldCom’s 401(k) plan. He recently recovered over $40 million for retirees after a lengthy trial in which he served as lead counsel. Mr. Lewis serves as a mediator for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, and in private practice, and has served as an arbitrator and expert witness in ERISA cases. He has also advised employee groups and benefit plan fiduciaries, is a fiduciary of two large employee benefit plans, and has served as an independent fiduciary of employee benefit plans.
In addition to his litigation and advisory activities throughout the U.S., Mr. Lewis has testified before Congressional committees regarding pension issues and served as one of the Co-Chairs of the Senior Board of Editors of the Employee Benefits Law treatise. He has also taught employee benefits law at the University of California at Berkeley School of Law, as well as pension law courses at several other law schools.
Articles & Presentations
•Panelist, ERISA Advisory Council, ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law Employees Benefits Committee 2024 Midwinter meeting, San Diego, California (2024).
•Panelist, Are You Ready for a DOL Cybersecurity Audit or to Defend Against Hacks? ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law Employee Benefits Committee 2023 Midwinter meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana (2023).
•Co-Chair of the Board of Senior Editors of Lewis, et al., Employee Benefits Law (3d and 4th eds. Bloomberg BNA).
•Board of Senior Editors, Employee Benefits Law (2d ed. BNA).
•Former editor of the Discrimination Claims Under ERISA chapter of Employee Rights Litigation: Pleading and Practice (Matthew Bender, 1991).
•Frequent speaker on ERISA topics such as preemption, fiduciary duty, and benefit claims at seminars sponsored by the American Bar Association, the Bureau of National Affairs, the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA), and other organizations.
Recognitions
Honors & Awards
•Ranked in Chambers and Partners USA Guide:
•USA Nationwide, ERISA Litigation: Mainly Plaintiffs - 2023-2026
•Selected to Super Lawyers list in Super Lawyers - Northern California, 2005-2026
•Selected to Top 100 Lawyers in Super Lawyers - Northern California, 2010-2016
•Top Attorney for ERISA Plaintiffs in the San Francisco Bar Area, The Recorder
•Forty Top Benefits Attorneys, The National Law Journal, 1998
