Hamilton v. Employees' Retirement System

MURDOCK, Justice.

Patricia Ann Hamilton sued the Employees’ Retirement System of Alabama (“the Retirement System”), seeking a declaratory judgment that she was entitled to the retirement benefits of her father, Charles E. Hamilton. Patricia also asserted claims of breach of contract and fraud against the Retirement System.

The Retirement System answered the complaint and, subsequently, moved for a summary judgment. In its motion for a summary judgment, the Retirement System argued that Patricia was not Charles’s designated beneficiary at the time of his death and that, therefore, the Retirement…