American Airlines Must Defend Class Action Over ESG 401(k) Funds

American Airlines Group Inc. must face a pilot’s claims that its 401(k) plan is loaded with investments geared toward “leftist political agendas,” using environmental, social, and corporate governance strategies, a judge ruled Thursday.

The class action covering as many as 100,000 participants in the American Airlines 401(k) plan is among the first private-sector lawsuits arguing that a plan sponsor breached its fiduciary duties by pursuing ESG investments at the expense of workers’…