Opinion
Case No. 04-00158.
July 24, 2006
ORDER ACCEPTING AND ADOPTING MAGISTRATE JUDGE'S REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION [64]
This matter comes before the Court on the Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation. Being fully advised in the premises and having reviewed the record and the pleadings, including the Report and Recommendation and Plaintiffs' and Defendants' objections thereto, the Court hereby ACCEPTS AND ADOPTS the Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation.
Contrary to Plaintiffs' objections, the Magistrate Judge properly interpreted the relevant Plan language, and the determination as to Pfizer's status as a party is not premature.
Contrary to the Defendants' objections, the Report and Recommendation does not conflict with Judge McKeague's earlier decision that Plaintiffs' state law claims concerning stock options "relate to" an ERISA plan and are thus preempted by ERISA. (Opinion at 11-12, docket #24). Moreover, although the Magistrate Judge failed to acknowledge that the Summary Plan Description ("SPD") to the Separation Plan defines "Acquisition Termination" (Admin. Record, Ex. 2 at 10-11), that definition is the same as the one provided in the Stock Option Brochure. Accordingly, the reasoning and result in the Report and Recommendation (R R at 23-24) is hereby accepted and adopted. "Unlike the Separation Plan, the Stock Option Brochure contains no rule of exclusion . . ., and nothing in the Brochure warrants importation of the exclusionary language found in section 3.01(b) of the Separation Plan." (R R at 24).
SO ORDERED.