Supreme Court rejects survivors’ MOSERS claim

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Because Laurel Beard of Moberly — a 26-year state Corrections department employee — died two days before she was to begin her retirement, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled last week that two women she had named as beneficiaries of her MOSERS retirement plan are not entitled to get those benefits.

The high court’s unanimous, seven-page decision — written by Judge George W. Draper III — upheld Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem’s Oct. 24, 2011, ruling that the Missouri State Employees Retirement System didn’t owe Beard’s beneficiaries any money.

Theresa Beard and Beth Carll sued MOSERS on April 15, 2010, after the MOSERS Board ruled in January 2010 that Beard and Carll — in Draper’s words — “were not entitled to retirement or survivor benefits because (Laurel) Beard died prior to her annuity starting date and did not have a surviving spouse or dependent children.”

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gsbcmo 9 months, 2 weeks ago

Dear staff writer, This is a most confusing story. What was the relationship between the claimants and the employee and what was the basis for their claim? Do your job a little better.

tonto_goldberg 9 months, 2 weeks ago

This is not confusing if (big if, I understand) you understand retirement plans, but you'd need to read a couple of books about retirement plans to get just the basics.

A person planning her retirement can choose a second (contingent) beneficiary (or more) if the retiring person chooses the right retirement options, and actually retires. The retiring person made that choice and designated the two women in the story as her contingent beneficiaries. She died before retiring, which made the whole plan fall through.