Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have gained an increasing foothold in the wealth-management investment universe, with ETF assets under management currently about half the assets under management of mutual funds. As the ETF...more
US regulators have increased their focus on cybersecurity issues impacting financial services companies, with a host of guidance documents recently released by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the three...more
Both the US House of Representatives and the Senate passed a resolution to overturn the US Department of Labor’s so-called “ESG Rule” on February 28 and March 1, 2023, respectively. The ESG Rule has been a topic of debate as...more
The US Department of Labor (DOL) released the Final ESG Rule on November 22, 2022, regulating the consideration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors by fiduciaries of employee benefit plans subject to the...more
Anti-ESG state legislation continues to focus on public retirement plan investing and asset management. Over the last year, 18 states have proposed or adopted state legislation or regulation limiting the ability of the state...more
This post serves as an update to our prior blog post analyzing the impact of this anti-ESG state legislation on public retirement plan investing. Over the past year, 17 states have proposed or adopted state legislation...more
As the US Department of Labor (DOL) continues to contemplate the role of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations in ERISA plan investing, ESG issues surrounding retirement plans are cropping up in another...more
The Department of Labor (DOL) released on October 13, 2021, a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights (Proposed Rule), which would amend a prior...more
Hinting that the US Department of Labor (DOL) is currently working on guidance related to cryptocurrency, the Acting Assistant Secretary for the DOL’s Employee Benefits Security Administration recently commented that the DOL...more
9/30/2021
/ 401k ,
Asset Class ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Management ,
Popular ,
Retirement Plan Providers ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In recent years, target retirement date funds (TDFs) have become a very popular investment option on participant-directed defined contribution plan investment lineups. But, as discussed in this LawFlash, as TDFs have grown in...more
We repeatedly warned over the past few months, that officials at the highest levels of the DOL were signaling that the DOL would begin an audit initiative focusing on retirement plan cybersecurity practices. ...more
6/11/2021
/ Audits ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Protection ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Fiduciary ,
Fiduciary-Standards ,
Investment Management ,
Popular ,
Retirement Plan
President Joe Biden has been in office for 34 days and his nominee for Secretary of Labor, Marty Walsh, has not yet been confirmed. So far, Mr. Walsh has not publicly stated much regarding his views or intended priorities...more
2/23/2021
/ Administrative Appointments ,
Biden Administration ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Form 5500 ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Retirement Plan
The US Department of Labor’s final ERISA regulation generally follows its proposal but without the focus on environmental, social, and governance investing. ...more
A hot topic in the world of money management, including the management of assets in retirement plans, is the consideration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors when evaluating investments....more
3/11/2020
/ Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary ,
Field Assistance Bulletins ,
Fund Managers ,
Industry Examinations ,
Investment ,
Investment Management ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Proxy Voting ,
Retirement Plan ,
Wealth Management