The Mysterious Boundary Beyond Which “Personal” Relationships Jeopardize a Director’s Independence -
In a recent enforcement action, the SEC concluded that the relationship between James Craigie and an officer of Church &...more
2/11/2025
/ Blockchain ,
Board of Directors ,
BSA/AML ,
Consumer Insurance Products ,
Corporate Governance ,
EFTs ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment ,
Investment Contract ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Retirement ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Variable Insurance
ERISA class action litigation against retirement plan fiduciaries remains a prominent feature of the legal landscape this year. These lawsuits typically involve allegations that plan fiduciaries acted imprudently in...more
1/27/2025
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
Class Action ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
cunning ,
Cunningham v Cornell University ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Excessive Fees ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Oral Argument ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Retirement Plan ,
SCOTUS
Gone With the Wind?
Closed-End Funds Risk Extinction -
Shares of SEC-registered closed-end funds (CEFs) have long held significant potential advantages for some investors. For example, unlike shares of mutual funds...more
10/16/2024
/ Cybersecurity ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Insurance Regulations ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Life Insurance ,
NAIC ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Social Media
A notable trend in ERISA litigation has emerged as in-house attorneys look to mitigate the risks of coming waves of class action litigation. Beginning in late 2023, there have been several challenges to the use of forfeiture...more
Funds Not Caged by SEC Names Rule Amendments: Roaming Room Remains -
The SEC recently adopted amendments to its investment company “names” rule that apply to most SEC-registered funds, including underlying funds in which...more
1/11/2024
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Funds ,
Life Insurance ,
Proposed Rules ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Traders ,
Whistleblowers
Regulators Hit Jackpot: Off-Channel Communications -
Several years before announcing the first “off-channel” communications enforcement action, the SEC and FINRA cautioned broker-dealers and investment advisers about...more
10/11/2023
/ Annuities ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Best Interest Standard ,
Breach of Contract ,
Class Action ,
COBRA ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Insurance Products ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Financial Contracts ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Health Insurance ,
Insider Trading ,
Insurance Fraud ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Insurance Regulations ,
Interlocutory Appeals ,
Investment Management ,
Life Insurance ,
Money Market Funds ,
Mutual Funds ,
NAIC ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
No-Action Letters ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
NYDFS ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Retirement ,
Robocalling ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
State and Local Government ,
Wage and Hour
Not many general counsels will tell you that their company’s COBRA notice is what keeps them up at night. But recent class action litigation highlights challenges to COBRA notices and issues that can be easily addressed to...more
A plan administrator did not abuse its discretion in concluding that a former employee’s surviving spouse was not entitled to life insurance benefits under an employee benefit plan. In Hayes v. Prudential Insurance Company of...more
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Fulkerson v. Unum Life Insurance Company of America that the beneficiary of an ERISA-covered life insurance policy was not entitled to accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D)...more
Although courts routinely enforce arbitration agreements, they will not compel arbitration of claims outside the scope of the parties’ agreement. That was the outcome in Hawkins v. Cintas Corp., in which two former employees...more
In recent months, circuit courts across the country have supported insurers’ discretion to deny long-term disability benefits (LTD) under ERISA. Since the beginning of the year, disability plan insurers have prevailed in the...more
The Ninth Circuit, in back-to-back opinion and memorandum decisions in Dorman v. Charles Schwab Corp., overruled long-standing precedent that ERISA claims are not arbitrable. The plaintiff, a former Schwab employee, filed a...more
10/10/2019
/ 401k ,
Affiliated-Business Arrangements ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Arbitration Procedural Rules ,
Breach of Duty ,
Charles Schwab ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Contract Terms ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Interlocutory Appeals ,
Investment Funds ,
Motion to Compel ,
Retirement Plan