Indumati Roy v. Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association and College Retirement Equities Fund

ALTIMARI, Circuit Judge:

In this case, we examine the applicability of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq. (“ERISA”) to the New York State University Optional Retirement Program, N.Y. Educ.Law §§ 390-397 (McKinney 1988) (“Optional Retirement Program”). Plaintiff-appellant Indumati Roy filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York (McAvoy, J.) attempting to recover benefits from her late husband’s participation in the Optional Retirement Program. Plaintiff, who was not named as a beneficiary of her husband’s…