Heimann v. National Elevator Industry Pension Fund

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas Louis Heimann and his wife, Lou Heimann, appeal from the dismissal of their case for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). They contend that the district court erred in deciding that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (""ERISA"") preempted their Texas state law claims for tortious interference with contract and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Alternatively, if the state law claims are preempted, they argue that their complaint states federal law claims upon which relief may be granted under ERISA §§ 502 (29 U.S.C.§ 1132) and 510 (29 U.S.C. § 1140). We affirm the district court's dismissal of the Heimanns' state law tort claims because of preemption, but reverse the dismissal of their suit entirely because their petition states actionable federal ERISA claims, and remand the case to the district court for further proceedings. I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY