LINCOLN NATIONAL CORP

Item 1. Legal Proceedings

Reference is made to the lawsuit captioned Wells Fargo Bank, N.A, solely in its capacity as securities intermediary v. The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company, previously disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 (“2024 Form 10-K”). On October 7, 2025, we entered into an agreement fully and finally settling the Wells Fargo case, and the Wells Fargo parties filed a stipulation of dismissal of the Wells Fargo case with prejudice.

Reference is made to the lawsuit captioned Donald C. Meade v. Lincoln National Corporation, Ellen Cooper, Dennis Glass, and Randal Freitag (“Defendants”), previously disclosed in our 2024 10-K, our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2025 (“Second Quarter 2025 Form 10-Q”). On August 7, 2025, plaintiff informed the court that it would pursue its appellate rights and would not file a second amended complaint. On August 28, 2025, the court entered an Order of Judgment granting Defendants’ motion to dismiss and directing that the amended complaint be dismissed with prejudice. On September 25, 2025, plaintiff filed a Notice to Appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in respect of the court’s order of July 24, 2025, and Order of Judgment of August 28, 2025 (including as to all prior opinions and orders that have merged into that order).

Maria Laurino and Ricardo Miller v. The Valley Hospital and Lincoln National Corporation and The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company, et. al., No. 2:25-cv-15263, is a putative class action lawsuit filed on September 4, 2025 in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. Plaintiffs are participants in Valley Hospital Health System Partnership Plan (the “Plan”), which is the 401(k) defined contribution plan for The Valley Hospital and affiliated entities. Plaintiffs seek to represent all current and former participants and beneficiaries in the Plan since September 4, 2019. Lincoln offers a fixed annuity investment option to Plan participants through its group annuity contract with the Plan. Lincoln also provides recordkeeping and administration services to the Plan. Plaintiffs allege that The Valley Hospital defendants acted in breach of their fiduciary duty, including by maintaining the Plan’s investment in the Lincoln stable value fund when other investment providers are alleged to have provided superior investment alternatives, and by participating in an alleged fiduciary breach by Lincoln. Plaintiffs allege that the Lincoln defendants were fiduciaries to the Plan and were parties in interest to a prohibited transaction under ERISA. The action seeks relief against the Lincoln defendants, including the disgorgement of profits, attorney’s fees and costs, pre-judgment and post-judgment interest and such other equitable or remedial relief as the court deems appropriate. We are vigorously defending this matter.

Reference is made to the tax assessment proceeding captioned Lincoln National Life Insurance Company v. Township of Radnor, previously disclosed in our 2024 Form 10-K and Second Quarter 2025 Form 10-Q. On July 25, 2025, the Township of Radnor (the “Township”) filed a post-trial motion asking the trial court to vacate its July 16, 2025, judgment in favor of The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company (“LNL”), reinstate the assessment subject to accrued statutory interest and enter judgment in favor of the Township. On August 15, 2025, the Township filed a notice of appeal in the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. On the same date, LNL filed a motion to strike the Township’s post-trial motion in the trial court, and the trial court granted LNL’s motion.

See Note 14 in “Part I – Item 1. Financial Statements” for further discussion regarding these matters and other contingencies.