Leonard Muzyn's TVARS Blog

The conclusion I reach from reading the court order is that TVA and TVARS can do whatever they want concerning our retirement benefits, and we cannot seek relief through the courts.  It appears that TVARS and TVA could agree to stop paying pension benefits, and TVA retirees could not sue in court to have them restored.  This goes against common sense, and the judge even stated that this is inconsistent with other retirement programs.  This is one reason I believe that the likelihood of an appeal succeeding in this case is greater than usual.  I understand that the plaintiffs have 60 days from the issuance of this court order to appeal.  I would be very surprised if the plaintiffs do not appeal. I understand that if the plaintiffs do appeal, it would be to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit , and that a 3-judge panel would be formed to look at the record and decide the case anew.  I understand that the panel would not rely on interpretations or conclusions reached in t

Click here to see the court order and here to see the complete accompanying memorandum. The court order: UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE NASHVILLE DIVISION JERRY DUNCAN, ET AL,  Plaintiffs TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY  RETIREMENT SYSTEM and  TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY,  Defendants No. 3:10-cv-217 Judge Trauger Magistrate Judge Brown ORDER For the reasons set forth in the accompanying Memorandum, defendant Tennessee Valley  Authority’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Docket No. 121) is hereby GRANTED and  plaintiffs’ claims against both defendants are DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE. The  plaintiffs’ Partial Motion for Summary Judgment (Docket No. 211) is denied as moot. Entry of this Order shall constitute judgment in the case. It is so ORDERED. Enter this 19th day of August 2015. ____________________________________ ___________________________________ ALETA A. TRAUGER United States District Judge From the memorandum:

Thank you very much for the confidence you have shown in me by letting me run unopposed for another term as an elected TVARS board member!  The TVA Retirement System (TVARS) recently accepted nominations for a three-year term as an elected member of the TVARS board of directors. At the close of the nomination period deadline, the only nomination petition received was for Leonard J. Muzyn, who currently serves as an elected director on the board. The TVARS rules and regulations state in the event only one person is nominated for the director position to be filled, the board may declare such nominee elected without the necessity of formal balloting by the membership. Therefore, in a special called meeting on July 24, 2015, the board approved a resolution declaring Mr. Muzyn re-elected as a director of the TVARS board for the three-year term beginning November 1, 2015, through October 31, 2018. Mr. Muzyn’s candidate information form is available for review on the TVARS website . A