Ex-Credit Union CEO Wins Retirement Benefits Over Disability

Former Scient Federal Credit Union chief executive David Purcell persuaded a federal judge that Scient unlawfully denied him executive benefits under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Judge Vernon D. Oliver of the US District Court for the District of Connecticut granted summary judgment to Purcell Thursday on his claim that he was entitled to accelerated benefits because he was fired for having Parkinson’s Disease.

In 2018, the credit union provided Purcell with an executive retirement plan known as a split dollar policy, in which an employer purchases life insurance on the life of an employee and the employee is ...