Prior to 2014, many federal courts applied a “presumption of prudence" standard when evaluating a fiduciary's decision to offer employer stock as an investment option under their company’s retirement plan. However, Fifth Third Bancorp v. Dudenhoeffer, drastically changed this, as the U.S. Supreme Continue Reading
Employee Relations Law Journal | Excessive Fee Suits Imperil ERISA Fiduciaries for Health and Welfare Plans
The standards that ERISA fiduciaries owe to the plans they oversee have been called “among the highest duties known to law... more exacting than the duties imposed upon common law trustees.” In recent years, ERISA fiduciaries of retirement plans have experienced heightened scrutiny from plan Continue Reading
Opportunities and Risks of Using AI in Employee Benefits Administration
The Bottom Line The emergence of generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology offers significant opportunities in the field of employee benefits, for both employers and their employees, including: Despite the promise that generative AI technology holds for benefits administration, Continue Reading
The IRS Releases Grab Bag Guidance on the SECURE 2.0 Act
The Bottom Line Almost a year after the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 was enacted as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, the IRS released guidance (Notice 2024-2) in the form of a grab bag Q&A aptly named “Miscellaneous Changes Under the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022.” The Notice covers Continue Reading
Employee Relations Law Journal | The Need for Employers To Get ”Control” of IRS Controlled Group Rules
Business owners have wide discretion in determining the best corporate structure to use in setting up their businesses. Some use a single entity, while others use multiple entities, which can take the form of corporations, partnerships, and limited liability companies. Regardless of form, however, Continue Reading
Strafford Webinar | “Cybersecurity and ERISA Retirement Plans: Risks and Best Practices for Plan Sponsors and Fiduciaries”
Quick Details Date | October 25, 2023Location | Webinar Session Overview In this session, Mark E. Bokert and two other panelists provide guidance to benefit counsel on trends in data breaches in ERISA retirement plans. The panel will discuss the scope of fiduciary obligations to prevent Continue Reading
Employee Relations Law Journal | ESG Investing by ERISA Plan Fiduciaries: The Saga Continues
There has been a long, confusing trail of regulatory and sub-regulatory guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) dealing with the standards that plan fiduciaries must meet when selecting socially-conscientious investments for their retirement plan (i.e., so-called ESG investments). Continue Reading
Employee Relations Law Journal | Milestone Retirement Reform Arrives: Key Provisions of SECURE 2.0
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, which contains an impressive collection of retirement plan reform provisions, popularly known as "SECURE 2.0." While certain elements of SECURE 2.0 build on provisions of other recent retirement reform, Continue Reading
Employee Relations Law Journal | Plan Fee Litigation: The Tide May Be Turning in Favor of Plan Fiduciaries
For many years, plan sponsors and other fiduciaries have been caught in a whirlwind of litigation primarily related to 401(k) and 403(b) plan fees. Many of these cases have settled resulting in plan fiduciaries having to pay many millions of dollars. Other cases have resulted in adverse decisions Continue Reading
Employee Benefit Considerations When Making Workforce Modifications
The Bottom Line Employers should work closely with ERISA counsel to ensure that employee benefit plans (e.g., non-qualified deferred compensation plans, health and welfare plans, and 401(k) plans) are being administered correctly as they make changes to their workforce.Employers should work with Continue Reading