Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Co. v. Knudson — Stevens, J., Dissenting

Summary

Justice Stevens, dissenting, would hold that ERISA's authorization to "enjoin" violations permits any appropriate order prohibiting or terminating a plan violation, without importing historical distinctions between law and equity. He would also read "other" equitable relief as expanding rather than restricting remedial authority and would reject extending the historical test beyond the provision previously interpreted by the Court. Justice Ginsburg, dissenting and joined by Justices Stevens, Souter, and Breyer, likewise would treat the requested restitution as equitable and preserve federal jurisdiction, criticizing the majority's reliance on archaic equitable classifications.