Lyndsey Barnett on Retirement Plan

The Uncashed Check Conundrum - What Employers Need to Do

A terminated employee moves and doesn’t tell you and the check for the small benefit forced out of your retirement plan gets returned. A participant requests a distribution and the check gets delivered, but it is never...more

7/24/2025 / 1099s , Benefit Plan Sponsors , Department of Labor (DOL) , Employee Benefits , Fiduciary Duty , Financial Institutions , IRS , Reporting Requirements , Retirement Plan , Revenue Rulings , Unclaimed Property , Withholding Requirements

Why Fiduciary Training Should Be a Priority for Your Retirement Plan Committee

If you serve on a retirement plan committee, you’ve taken on an important and legally significant role. As a fiduciary under the ERISA, you are personally liable for the decisions you make regarding the plan. That’s not a...more

6/19/2025 / Benefit Plan Sponsors , Duty of Care , Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) , Fiduciary , Fiduciary Duty , Personal Liability , Retirement Plan , Training

What If an Employee Doesn’t Tell You They Got Divorced?

When an employee forgets—or chooses not—to notify you of a divorce, it can cause a ripple effect on your benefit plan administration, particularly with your health plan. Here's what you need to know and do to keep your health...more

4/25/2025 / Benefit Plan Sponsors , COBRA , Divorce , Employee Benefits , Employer Responsibilities , Health Insurance , Human Resources Professionals , Retirement Plan

2025 Benefit Limits & Annual Amounts all in One Place

There is a telltale sign that you are a true benefit nerd...you have printouts of the annual benefit plan limits tacked to the wall by your desk. I frequently reference my charts, but it has been a few years since I found a...more

2/10/2025 / Affordable Care Act , Compensation & Benefits , Employee Benefits , Health Insurance , Health Savings Accounts , Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs) , Retirement Plan

Do you Have the Proper Document in Place to File a Single 5500 for your Welfare Plans?

Unless an exception applies, all ERISA-covered benefit plans have to file an annual Form 5500 each year with the DOL and IRS (filed through the DOL’s website). Plan sponsors have the ability to combine their welfare plan...more

1/8/2024 / Benefit Plan Sponsors , Department of Labor (DOL) , Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) , Filing Requirements , Form 5500 , IRS , Retirement Plan

Why Time is of the Essence More than Ever in Correcting Retirement Plan Errors

Errors in retirement plans happen even to the most well-intentioned plan sponsors. Several decades ago, the IRS published the first version of the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution Program (EPCRS), which outlines...more

8/16/2023 / Audits , Benefit Plan Sponsors , Employee Benefits , EPCRS , Internal Revenue Code (IRC) , IRS , Retirement Plan , SECURE Act , Self-Correction Programs , Voluntary Correction Program

Save Trees, Grow Retirement Plans

SECURE 2.0 has changed the game again by now allowing employers to save time and money by eliminating certain notices to be sent to unenrolled employees. In the past sponsors were required to send voluminous documents...more

7/3/2023 / Benefit Plan Sponsors , Employee Benefits , Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) , IRS , Notice Requirements , Relief Measures , Retirement Plan , SECURE Act

New Optional In-Service Withdrawal Right for Domestic Abuse Victims

The next installment of our updates on SECURE 2.0 is on another new in-service withdrawal option. SECURE 2.0 allows plan sponsors of defined contribution plans to amend their plans to allow plan participants who are victims...more

6/30/2023 / Benefit Plan Sponsors , Defined Contribution Plans , Domestic Violence , Employee Benefits , Pension Plan Amendments , Plan Documents , Retirement Plan , Retirement Plan Providers , SECURE Act , Voluntary Withdrawal

Lyndsey Barnett

Bricker Graydon LLP

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