Despite his vow of poverty and commitment to provide all of his property to his religious order, when a retired Jesuit priest named his sister-in-law as the beneficiary of his retirement plans, the Employment Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) prevents a claim under state contract theory, the federal District Court in Connecticut has ruled. It has dismissed a claim by the priest’s Province seeking a declaratory judgment that it was entitled to the funds. Rev. Edwin Cassem entered the Society of Jesus in 1953 at the age of 18, was ordained in 1970, and took his final vows of poverty in 1985. Following his graduation from Harvard Medical School, he had a long and distinguished career as...