Facts
The case concerns a dispute between L. and the X. staff welfare foundation. L. filed a lawsuit with the Administrative Court of the Canton of Bern for payment of pension benefits. The Administrative Court did not enter into the claim and ordered L. to pay the defendant a party compensation of CHF 14,750.15. Against this decision, L. filed a constitutional appeal with the Federal Court, which was then transferred to the Federal Insurance Court.Considerations
The Federal Insurance Court states that for the appealability of a cantonal decision in the field of social insurance, it does not matter whether the decision is based on federal or cantonal law. The decisive factor is that the substantive subject matter of the dispute belongs to federal social insurance law. Therefore, the Federal Insurance Court has jurisdiction, even if it is a purely procedural decision at the cantonal level. On the merits, the court holds that the principle of cost-free proceedings in social insurance is a fundamental principle to enable insured persons…