UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA Alexandria Division LORI CHAVEZ-DEREMER, in her capacity as  the Secretary of Labor, United States Department  of Labor  Plaintiff,  v. TENOR TECHNOLOGIES, LLC, et al.,  Defendants.  Case No. 1:25-cv-01465-AJT-LRV ORDER This matter comes before the Court on Plaintiffs Motion for the Court to Order Service be Made on Defendants Lasha Peterson; Tenor Technologies, LLC; and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan and Extend the Time to Serve the Complaint to February 27, 2026 (Dkt. No. 22) (the Motion for Service by Marshal”) and Plaintiffs Motion for the Court to Allow Service Via Alternate Means on Defendants Lasha Peterson; Tenor Technologies, LLC; and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan and Extend the Time to Complete Alternate Service (Dkt. No. 26) (the “Motion for Service by Alternate Means”). Upon consideration of the briefing and the full record. the Court GRANTS the Motion for Service by Alternate Means and DENIES the Motion for Service by Marshal. A. Background Plaintiff Lori Chavez-Deremer, in her capacity as Secretary of the United States Department of Labor, (the “Secretary’') filed this action on September 4, 2025, bringing certain claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) against Defendants Brian Briscoe, Lasha Peterson, Tenor Technologies, LLC, and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan. (Dkt. No. 1 ¶ 1.) Defendant Lasha Peterson, formerly Lasha Briscoe, was an owner of Defendant Tenor Technologies, LLC, (id. ¶ 7), which sponsored the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan to provide retirement benefits to its employees, (id. ¶ 8.) Defendant Peterson also acted as the fiduciary for the Plan. (Id. ¶ 15.) Between September 4, 2025 and December 5, 2025, the Secretary made repeated attempts to locate Defendant Peterson and attempted service at an address in Slidell, Louisiana with the aid of a private process server who determined that Defendant Peterson did not live at the location. (Dkt. No. 26-1 ¶ 4.) On December 12, 2025, the Court granted the Secretary’s motion for a forty-five (45) day extension to serve Defendants Lasha Peterson, individually and on behalf of Tenor Technologies, LLC, and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan. (Dkt. No. 20.) Accordingly, the new service deadline was January 26, 2026. (Id.) The Secretary then undertook efforts to identify other addresses associated with Defendant Peterson. (See Dkt. No. 26-2 ¶¶ 3–6.) In December 2025, the Secretary engaged a second private process server, Panther Trax Delivery LLC, to serve copies of the Summons and Complaint on Defendant Peterson. (Dkt. No. 23 ¶ 2.) The Secretary provided Panther Trax Delivery LLC with two addresses where she understood that Defendant Peterson may reside, an apartment in Jackson, Mississippi and a home in Flowood, Mississippi. (Dkt. No. 24 at 2.) A co-owner of Panther Trax Delivery LLC submitted a sworn declaration describing the various attempts to serve Defendant Peterson since December 2025. (Dkt. No. 23.) With respect to the apartment building in Jackson, Mississippi, the private process server attempted service on December 21, 2025, December 27, 2025, January 3, 2026, January 7, 2026, and January 10, 2026. (Id. ¶¶ 3–4.) Despite the repeated attempts, the process server could not reach the apartment believed to be Ms. Peterson’s because there were two layers of security to enter the building—a call box and security desk—and the process server was denied entry each time. (Id.) During the January 10, 2026 service attempt, the security personnel at the apartment building informed the process server that he was barred from any future attempts to enter the building. (Id. ¶ 5.) As for the Flowood, Mississippi home address, the private process server attempted service on January 9 and January 10, 2026, and a woman identifying herself as Defendant Peterson’s sister answered the door. (Id. ¶ 6.) The same woman stated that she believed Defendant Peterson's primary residence was the Jackson, Mississippi apartment building where the process server already had attempted service. (Id.) In addition to in-person service attempts, the private process server called a phone number believed to be Defendant Peterson's, (id.), and the Secretary's counsel emailed Defendant Peterson using the email address lasha.peterson@gmaiI.com, (Dkt. No. 24 at 3). On January 11, 2026, the Secretary’s counsel received a response from the email address lasha.peterson@gmail.com. (Id. at 3 n. 1.) The Secretary has submitted that email correspondence for the Court's review. (See Dkt. No. 26-2 at ECF p. 5.) In the email, someone using the email address “lasha.peterson@gmail.com'' and the signature block "Lasha Briscoe Peterson” responds to the Secretary’s counsel by copying a Brian Briscoe and writing “[i]f you are requesting money, you will need to obtain it from Mr. Brian Briscoe – he has stolen and embezzled all of the funds from Tenor” (Id.) Defendant Brian Briscoe and his counsel have since “provided proof that Defendant Peterson's email address is lasha.peterson@gmail.com.” (Id. ¶ 7.) B. Legal Standard Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(c)(3), “[a]t the plaintiffs request, the court may order that service be made by a United States marshal or deputy marshal or by a person specially appointed by the court.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(c)(3). Separately, under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(e)(1): “[u]nless federal law provides otherwise, an individual—other than a minor, an incompetent person, or a person whose waiver has been filed—may be served in a judicial district of the United States by...following state law for serving a summons in an action brought in courts of general jurisdiction in the state where the district court is located or where service is made.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(e)(1). Under applicable Virginia law, if a party is unable to complete personal service, then Virginia Code Section 8.01-296(3) permits service by publication. Va. Code § 8.01-296(3). Section 8.01-316 permits service through publication so long as a plaintiff, through an affidavit, establishes one of the several enumerated situations that makes a case eligible for service by publication. Va. Code § 8.01-316(A)(1). Specifically, Section 8.01-316 permits service by publication if the party to be served is a “nonresident individual” and where “diligence has been used without effect to ascertain the location of the party to be served. See Va. Code § 8.01- 316(A)(1)(a) &(b). Upon establishing one of the grounds enumerated in Section 8.01-316, the plaintiff must comply with the publication requirements in Section 8.01-317, which provides that a notice be published in either a newspaper prescribed by the court “or, if none be so prescribed, as the clerk may direct. Va. Code § 8.01-317. Where the court orders service by publication, the order of publication and any related notice “shall be posted at the front door of the courthouse wherein the court is held” and “a copy of such order of publication shall be mailed to each of the defendants at the post office address given in the affidavit required by § 8.01-316.” Id. Additionally, pursuant to Section 8.01-317, courts may direct service by electronic means in cases such as this one: The court may, in any case where deemed proper, dispense with such publication in a newspaper or may order that appropriate notice he given by electronic means, under such terms and conditions as the court may direct, either in addition to or in lieu of publication in a newspaper, provided that such electronic notice is reasonably calculated, under all circumstances, to apprise interested parties of the pendency of the action and afford them an opportunity to present their objections. Va. Code § 8.01-317 (emphasis added). C. Discussion The Secretary moves to serve Defendants Lasha Peterson, Tenor Technologies, LLC, and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan through alternate means provided under Virginia law, specifically, through publication and email. The Secretary also moves to have a U.S. marshal personally serve Defendant Peterson on behalf of herself, and Tenor Technologies, LLC, and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan. Each request is considered in turn. 1. Service by Publication With respect to the request for service by publication, the Secretary has satisfied the statutory prerequisites under Section 8.01-316 because she submitted an affidavit describing her diligent efforts to effectuate service on a nonresident individual. (See Va. Code § 8.01-316(A)(1); Dkt. No. 26-2.) The Secretary also prepared a “Notice of Filing of Complaint Under [ERISA] that complies with the Section 8.01-317 requirements that the publication “give the abbreviated style of the suit, state briefly its object, and require the defendants, or unknown parties, against whom it is entered to appear and protect their interests on or before the date stated in the order which shall be no sooner than 50 days after entry of the order of publication.” (See Va. Code § 8.01-317 (emphasis added); Dkt. No. 26-3 at 3-4 (hereinafter, the “Notice").) The Secretary requests that, as contemplated under Section 8.01-317, the Notice be published in the Clarion Ledger, which is a newspaper that services the Jackson, Mississippi area. (See Va. Code § 8.01-317; Dkt. No. 26-1 at 4.) The Court concludes that the Clarion Ledger is a newspaper that satisfies the requirements of Virginia Code Section 8.01-324. See Va. Code § 8.01-324. Accordingly, the Court will grant the Secretary’s request to publish the Notice in the Clarion Ledger. See Pizzella v. Khim, No. l:18-cv-808, 2020 WL 10090732, at *2 (E.D. Va. Feb. 19, 2020). report and recommendation adopted at 2020 WL 13685473 (Mar. 16, 2020) (noting that the Secretary was authorized to serve defendant by publishing notice in the Fairfax County Times); Safe Auto Ins. Co. v. Spruill, l:19-cv-01618, 2020 WL 5949648, at *2 (E.D. Va. Sept. 4, 2020) (permitting service by publication in Richmond Times). Additionally, as required under Section 8.01-317. this Order and the Notice shall be “posted at the front door of the courthouse” and the Secretary is directed to mail a copy of this Order and the Notice to Defendant Peterson at the address set forth in the affidavit in support of publication. See Va. Code § 8.01-317. 2. Service by Electronic Means As for the Secretary’s request to effectuate service pursuant to Section 8.01-317 by using an email address understood to be Defendant Peterson’s, the question is whether that method of service is “reasonably calculated, under all circumstances, to apprise interested parties of the pendency of the action and afford them an opportunity to present their objections.” Va. Code § 8.01-317. Because Defendant Brian Briscoe and his counsel “provided proof that Defendant Peterson's email address is lasha.peterson@gmail.com,” (Dkt. No. 26-2 ¶ 7), and someone using that email address responded to counsel’s email on January 11, 2026 using the signature block “Lasha Briscoe Peterson,” (id. at ECF p. 5), the Court finds that emailing this Order and the Notice to lasha.peterson@gmail.com is likely to apprise Defendant Peterson of this action. 3. Service by United States Marshal Plaintiff also requests that the Court “order that the United States Marshal or Deputy Marshal effectuate service on Defendant Lasha Peterson, individually and on behalf of Tenor Technologies, LLC and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan.” (Dkt. No. 22 at 1.) Given that the Court grants the Secretary’s Motion for Service by Alternate Means, the Court finds that it is not necessary to engage the United States Marshal to effectuate service of process. For the reasons set forth above, it is hereby ORDERED that the Motion for Service by Alternate Means (Dkt. No. 26) is GRANTED. It is further ORDERED that Defendants Lasha Peterson; Tenor Technologies, LLC; and the Tenor Technologies 401 (k) Plan shall file a responsive pleading on or before sixty days from the entry of this Order. It is further ORDERED that within ten (10) days after entry of this Order, the Secretary provide a copy of this Order and the attached Notice through email to Defendant Lasha Peterson, individually and on behalf of Defendants Tenor Technologies, LLC and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan, at the email address “lasha.peterson@gmail.com. It is further ORDERED that within ten (10) days after entry of this Order, the Secretary mail this Order and the attached Notice to Defendant Lasha Peterson, individually and on behalf of Defendants Tenor Technologies, LLC and the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan, at Ms. Peterson’s last known address of 102 N. Mill Street, Apt. 907. Jackson, Mississippi 39201. It is further ORDERED that within ten (10) days after entry of this Order, the Secretary publish this Order and the attached Notice in the Clarion Ledger, a periodical located in Jackson, Mississippi. The Secretary shall then continue to publish this Order and the attached Notice in the Clarion Ledger once a week for four consecutive weeks, in accordance with Title 8.01-317 of the Virginia Code. It is further ORDERED that within ten (10) days after entry of this Order, the Secretary shall ensure that this Order and the attached Notice are posted at the U.S. District Courthouse, Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, by the Clerk consistent with Title 8.01-317 of the Virginia Code. It is further ORDERED that a declaration be filed on the Secretary’s behalf, no later than forty (40) days after the entry of this Order, describing the steps that have been taken to comply with this Order. It is further ORDERED that the deadline to complete service of process on Defendants Lasha Peterson: Tenor Technologies, LLC; and the Tenor Technologies 401 (k) Plan is extended by sixty (60) days from the date of this Order. It is further ORDERED that the Motion for Service by Marshal (Dkt. No. 22) is DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE. It is further ORDERED that the Motion to Waive Appearance of Local Counsel (Dkt. No. 30) is DENIED AS MOOT. It is further ORDERED that the hearing scheduled for February 20, 2026 is VACATED. ENTERED this 10th day of February, 2026. /s/ LRV  Lindsey Robinson Vaala United States Magistrate Judge Alexandria, Virginia SERVICE BY PUBLICATION IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA Alexandria Division LORI CHAVEZ-DEREMER, SECRETARY OF : LABOR, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF : LABOR, : Plaintiff,  v.  TENOR TECHNOLOGIES, LLC, BRIAN BRISCOE, : LASHA PETERSON (F/K/A/ LASHA BRISCOE), AND : THE TENOR TECHNOLOGIES 401(K) PLAN, : Defendants.  Civil Action No. 1:25-cv-01465 NOTICE OF FILING OF COMPLAINT UNDER THE EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY ACT, 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq. On September 4, 2025, the Secretary of Labor, U.S. Department of Labor, filed a complaint in the above-captioned matter against Lasha Peterson and Tenor Technologies, LLC, among others, alleging that Peterson and Tenor Technologies, LLC breached fiduciary duties that they owed to the Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan (Plan) under the following ERISA provisions: 29 U.S.C. § 1103(a) and (c)(l); 29 U.S.C. § 1104(a)(1)(A), (a)(l)(B), and (a)(1)(D); 29 U.S.C. § 1105(a)(1), (a)(2), and (a)(3), and; 29 U.S.C. § 1106(a)(l)(D), (b)(l), and (b)(2). The Secretary seeks an order from the Court requiring Peterson and Tenor Technologies, LLC to restore all losses to the Plan that resulted from these breaches, along with interest or lost opportunity costs, and to pay the costs of an independent fiduciary who will be appointed to administer the Plan. The Secretary also asks that the Plan be permitted to set off any individual account balance of Peterson against the loss amount and the removal of Peterson and Tenor Technologies, LLC as fiduciaries to the Plan. The Secretary further seeks a permanent injunction against Peterson and Tenor Technologies, LLC from ever again serving as an ERISA fiduciary and an award of costs. TO: Lasha Peterson, individually and on behalf of Defendant Tenor Technologies, LLC and Defendant Tenor Technologies 401(k) Plan, whose last known address is 102 N. Mill Street, Apt. 907, Jackson, Mississippi 39201. YOU HAVE BEEN SUED IN COURT. If you wish to defend, you must enter a written appearance personally or by an attorney and file your defense or objections in writing with the Court. You are warned that if you fail to do so on or before April 13, 2026, the case may proceed without you and a judgment may be entered against you without further notice for the relief requested by the Plaintiff. You may lose money or property or other rights important to you. YOU SHOULD TAKE THIS NOTICE TO YOUR LAWYER AT ONCE. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A LAWYER, OR CANNOT AFFORD ONE, GO TO OR TELEPHONE THE OFFICE SET FORTH BELOW TO FIND OUT WHERE YOU CAN GET LEGAL HELP. LAWYER REFERRAL SERVICE Fairfax Bar Association 4110 Chain Bridge Road, Suite 216 Fairfax, VA 22030 (703)246-2740 http://www.fairfaxbar.org/page/LRS ATTORNEY NAME: Austin Brunson, Atty. for Plaintiff ATTORNEY ADDRESS: 1835 Market Street Mailstop SOL/22 Philadelphia, PA 19103, 215-861-4843 February 17, 24, March 3, 10, 2026 #12085258