R.V. Kuhns & Associates, Inc.

Allegations: IN DECEMBER 2017, OUR FIRM-ALONG WITH 31 OTHER ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS-WAS NAMED IN A COMPLAINT FILED, NOT BY A CLIENT, BUT BY EIGHT INDIVIDUAL PLAN PARTICIPANTS OF KENTUCKY RETIREMENT SYSTEMS (KRS, NOW KNOWN AS KPPA) (CASE 1348). THE CLAIMS MADE AGAINST RVK ARE COMPLETELY MERITLESS. IN RVK'S 36-YEAR HISTORY, THE FIRM HAS NEVER BEEN NAMED IN A COMPLAINT INITIATED BY A CLIENT. AND IN THIS CASE, RVK'S FORMER CLIENT-KRS-HAS OPTED NOT TO ASSERT ANY CLAIMS. THE KENTUCKY SUPREME COURT ORDERED IN JULY 2020 THAT THE COMPLAINT BE DISMISSED FOR LACK OF STANDING. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, A GROUP OF PRIVATE PLAINTIFFS WHO PARTICIPATE IN KRS'S HYBRID CASH BALANCE PLAN (THE "TIER 3" PLAINTIFFS) AND WHO WERE REPRESENTED BY SOME OF THE SAME ATTORNEYS SOUGHT TO REVIVE THE SUIT. THE KENTUCKY ATTORNEY GENERAL (AG) ALSO SOUGHT TO INTERVENE FOR THE STATE, AND FILED A DUPLICATE CASE (CASE 590) BUT DID NOT REQUIRE RESPONSES. THE TIER 3 PLAINTIFFS FILED TWO ADDITIONAL SUITS (CASE 645 AND CASE 20). NEITHER THE AG NOR THE TIER 3 PLAINTIFFS ALLEGED ANY NEW CLAIMS AGAINST RVK. ON DECEMBER 28, 2020, THE TRIAL COURT DISMISSED THE PRIVATE PLAINTIFFS FROM THE ORIGINAL CASE (CASE 1348) BUT ALLOWED THE AG TO INTERVENE. IN APRIL 2023, THE KENTUCKY COURT OF APPEALS AFFIRMED THE DISMISSAL OF THE ORIGINAL COMPLAINT IN CASE 1348 AND VACATED THE ORDER ALLOWING THE AG TO INTERVENE. THAT DECISION BECAME FINAL IN JANUARY 2024 WHEN THE KENTUCKY SUPREME COURT DECLINED TO HEAR A FURTHER APPEAL. ACCORDINGLY, THE DISMISSAL OF CASE 1348 HAS BECOME FINAL. THE AG'S DUPLICATE CASE, CASE 590, WAS HELD IN ABEYANCE UNTIL JULY 2023. RVK AND ALL OTHER DEFENDANTS HAVE MOVED TO DISMISS THE COMPLAINT. THOSE MOTIONS ARE PENDING. THE TIER 3 PLAINTIFFS' FIRST SEPARATE SUIT (CASE 20) WAS, RELEVANT TO RVK, MATERIALLY IDENTICAL TO CASE 1348 (THOUGH THEY DID NOT NAME ANY RVK PRINCIPALS). THEY LATER AMENDED THIS COMPLAINT (WITH NO NEW CLAIMS AGAINST RVK) TO ASSERT THEIR CLAIMS ON BEHALF OF A PUTATIVE CLASS. THE DEFENDANTS REMOVED CASE 20 TO FEDERAL COURT ON JULY 19, 2021, AND THAT CASE HAS BEEN STAYED BECAUSE OF THE ONGOING STATE LITIGATION. THE TIER 3 PLAINTIFFS' SECOND SUIT (CASE 645) PURPORTS TO ASSERT BREACH OF TRUST CLAIMS. THE ALLEGATIONS ARE ESSENTIALLY THE SAME AS CASE 20 (BUT IT IS NOT A PUTATIVE CLASS ACTION) AND QUITE SIMILAR TO CASE 1348 AND CASE 590. RVK AND ALL DEFENDANTS MOVED TO DISMISS THIS CASE ON DECEMBER 1, 2021, AND THOSE MOTIONS REMAIN PENDING. FOR ITS PART, KPPA RETAINED AN OUTSIDE LAW FIRM (CALCATERRA POLLACK LLP) IN NOVEMBER 2020 TO INVESTIGATE AND ISSUE A REPORT. AFTER RECEIPT OF THE REPORT, KPPA'S BOARD VOTED ON MAY 26, 2021, NOT TO "INTERVENE AS A PLAINTIFF IN THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S AMENDED COMPLAINT" OR "FILE ANY LITIGATION AGAINST ANY PARTY . . . AT THIS TIME." KPPA AND THE AG DECLINED TO RELEASE THE REPORT TO THE PUBLIC AT THE TIME, BUT A COURT ORDERED THE RELEASE OF THE REPORT UNDER THE OPEN RECORDS ACT IN AUGUST 2022. THE REPORT STATED THAT AFTER EXAMINING 192,000 DOCUMENTS, REVIEWING BOARD MEETING MATERIALS AND RECORDINGS, AND CONDUCTING SEVERAL INTERVIEWS, THE FIRM CONCLUDED THAT RVK "MET [ITS] CONTRACTUAL AND FIDUCIARY DUTIES," "HONESTLY DISCLOS[ED] THE INVESTMENT CHALLENGES KRS FACED," AND "SERVED AS A VALUABLE CONSULTANT." THE FIRM FOUND NO "INDICIA OF COLLUSIONS, COVER UP, OR FIDUCIARY FAILURE" BY RVK, AND FOUND NO "VIOLATIONS OF FIDUCIARY DUTY OR ILLEGAL ACTIVITY" BY RVK. THE FULL REPORT IS AVAILABLE AT HTTPS://TINYURL.COM/4YNKAH6F. THE JUDGE PRESIDING IN THE STATE COURT LAWSUITS RECUSED IN CASE 1348, CASE 590, AND CASE 645 ON MAY 27, 2022. THE SUITS WERE REASSIGNED TO ANOTHER JUDGE. FROM THE FILING OF THE FIRST SUIT TO NOW, RVK HAS MAINTAINED THAT OUR FIRM'S YEARS OF SERVICE TO KRS WERE THOROUGHLY PROFESSIONAL, HIGHLY TRANSPARENT, AND ALWAYS CONSISTENT WITH OUR CONTRACTUAL AND FIDUCIARY DUTIES. Status: Pending Summary: IN DECEMBER 2017, OUR FIRM-ALONG WITH 31 OTHER ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS-WAS NAMED IN A COMPLAINT FILED, NOT BY A CLIENT, BUT BY EIGHT INDIVIDUAL PLAN PARTICIPANTS OF KENTUCKY RETIREMENT SYSTEMS (KRS, NOW KNOWN AS KPPA) (CASE 1348). THE CLAIMS MADE AGAINST RVK ARE COMPLETELY MERITLESS. IN RVK'S 36-YEAR HISTORY, THE FIRM HAS NEVER BEEN NAMED IN A COMPLAINT INITIATED BY A CLIENT. AND IN THIS CASE, RVK'S FORMER CLIENT-KRS-HAS OPTED NOT TO ASSERT ANY CLAIMS. THE KENTUCKY SUPREME COURT ORDERED IN JULY 2020 THAT THE COMPLAINT BE DISMISSED FOR LACK OF STANDING. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, A GROUP OF PRIVATE PLAINTIFFS WHO PARTICIPATE IN KRS'S HYBRID CASH BALANCE PLAN (THE "TIER 3" PLAINTIFFS) AND WHO WERE REPRESENTED BY SOME OF THE SAME ATTORNEYS SOUGHT TO REVIVE THE SUIT. THE KENTUCKY ATTORNEY GENERAL (AG) ALSO SOUGHT TO INTERVENE FOR THE STATE, AND FILED A DUPLICATE CASE (CASE 590) BUT DID NOT REQUIRE RESPONSES. THE TIER 3 PLAINTIFFS FILED TWO ADDITIONAL SUITS (CASE 645 AND CASE 20). NEITHER THE AG NOR THE TIER 3 PLAINTIFFS ALLEGED ANY NEW CLAIMS AGAINST RVK. ON DECEMBER 28, 2020, THE TRIAL COURT DISMISSED THE PRIVATE PLAINTIFFS FROM THE ORIGINAL CASE (CASE 1348) BUT ALLOWED THE AG TO INTERVENE. IN APRIL 2023, THE KENTUCKY COURT OF APPEALS AFFIRMED THE DISMISSAL OF THE ORIGINAL COMPLAINT IN CASE 1348 AND VACATED THE ORDER ALLOWING THE AG TO INTERVENE. THAT DECISION BECAME FINAL IN JANUARY 2024 WHEN THE KENTUCKY SUPREME COURT DECLINED TO HEAR A FURTHER APPEAL. ACCORDINGLY, THE DISMISSAL OF CASE 1348 HAS BECOME FINAL. THE AG'S DUPLICATE CASE, CASE 590, WAS HELD IN ABEYANCE UNTIL JULY 2023. RVK AND ALL OTHER DEFENDANTS HAVE MOVED TO DISMISS THE COMPLAINT. THOSE MOTIONS ARE PENDING. THE TIER 3 PLAINTIFFS' FIRST SEPARATE SUIT (CASE 20) WAS, RELEVANT TO RVK, MATERIALLY IDENTICAL TO CASE 1348 (THOUGH THEY DID NOT NAME ANY RVK PRINCIPALS). THEY LATER AMENDED THIS COMPLAINT (WITH NO NEW CLAIMS AGAINST RVK) TO ASSERT THEIR CLAIMS ON BEHALF OF A PUTATIVE CLASS. THE DEFENDANTS REMOVED CASE 20 TO FEDERAL COURT ON JULY 19, 2021, AND THAT CASE HAS BEEN STAYED BECAUSE OF THE ONGOING STATE LITIGATION. THE TIER 3 PLAINTIFFS' SECOND SUIT (CASE 645) PURPORTS TO ASSERT BREACH OF TRUST CLAIMS. THE ALLEGATIONS ARE ESSENTIALLY THE SAME AS CASE 20 (BUT IT IS NOT A PUTATIVE CLASS ACTION) AND QUITE SIMILAR TO CASE 1348 AND CASE 590. RVK AND ALL DEFENDANTS MOVED TO DISMISS THIS CASE ON DECEMBER 1, 2021, AND THOSE MOTIONS REMAIN PENDING. FOR ITS PART, KPPA RETAINED AN OUTSIDE LAW FIRM (CALCATERRA POLLACK LLP) IN NOVEMBER 2020 TO INVESTIGATE AND ISSUE A REPORT. AFTER RECEIPT OF THE REPORT, KPPA'S BOARD VOTED ON MAY 26, 2021, NOT TO "INTERVENE AS A PLAINTIFF IN THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S AMENDED COMPLAINT" OR "FILE ANY LITIGATION AGAINST ANY PARTY . . . AT THIS TIME." KPPA AND THE AG DECLINED TO RELEASE THE REPORT TO THE PUBLIC AT THE TIME, BUT A COURT ORDERED THE RELEASE OF THE REPORT UNDER THE OPEN RECORDS ACT IN AUGUST 2022. THE REPORT STATED THAT AFTER EXAMINING 192,000 DOCUMENTS, REVIEWING BOARD MEETING MATERIALS AND RECORDINGS, AND CONDUCTING SEVERAL INTERVIEWS, THE FIRM CONCLUDED THAT RVK "MET [ITS] CONTRACTUAL AND FIDUCIARY DUTIES," "HONESTLY DISCLOS[ED] THE INVESTMENT CHALLENGES KRS FACED," AND "SERVED AS A VALUABLE CONSULTANT." THE FIRM FOUND NO "INDICIA OF COLLUSIONS, COVER UP, OR FIDUCIARY FAILURE" BY RVK, AND FOUND NO "VIOLATIONS OF FIDUCIARY DUTY OR ILLEGAL ACTIVITY" BY RVK. THE FULL REPORT IS AVAILABLE AT HTTPS://TINYURL.COM/4YNKAH6F. THE JUDGE PRESIDING IN THE STATE COURT LAWSUITS RECUSED IN CASE 1348, CASE 590, AND CASE 645 ON MAY 27, 2022. THE SUITS WERE REASSIGNED TO ANOTHER JUDGE. FROM THE FILING OF THE FIRST SUIT TO NOW, RVK HAS MAINTAINED THAT OUR FIRM'S YEARS OF SERVICE TO KRS WERE THOROUGHLY PROFESSIONAL, HIGHLY TRANSPARENT, AND ALWAYS CONSISTENT WITH OUR CONTRACTUAL AND FIDUCIARY DUTIES.