Editor's Overview -
As the summer draws to a close, this month's Newsletter previews three cases that the U.S. Supreme Court already has agreed to hear that ought to be of particular interest to ERISA plan sponsors and...more
8/28/2015
/ 401k ,
Actual Injuries ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Article III ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
COBRA ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Delta Airlines ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Duty to Disclose ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Equitable Relief ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
FIfth Third Bancorp v Dudenhoeffer ,
Final Rules ,
HDHP ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Plan Sponsors ,
HSA ,
IRS ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Montanile v Board of Trustees ,
Non-Grandfathered Health Plans ,
PBGC ,
Penalties ,
Preemption ,
Reimbursements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 510 ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing ,
Stock Drop Litigation ,
Subrogation ,
Summary of Benefits and Coverage ,
Tax Credits ,
Trade Adjustment Assistance ,
Trade Preferences Extension Act (TPEA) ,
U.S. Treasury
Editor's Overview -
This month's article by Lindsey Chopin discusses Affordable Care Act ("ACA") litigation. Just five years old, the Supreme Court has considered issues related to the ACA numerous times. Two of those...more
7/29/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Burwell v Hobby Lobby ,
Chapter 11 ,
Class Certification ,
Clawbacks ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Contraceptive Coverage Mandate ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Due Process ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Protection ,
Executive Compensation ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
General Motors ,
Incentive Compensation ,
Individual Mandate ,
IRS ,
King v Burwell ,
Loss Causation ,
Medicaid Expansion ,
Mental Health Parity Rule ,
Obergefell v. Hodges ,
Public Health Service Act ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
State Health Insurance Exchanges ,
UAW ,
Venue
As employers and plans prepare for 2016 open enrollment, they must be sure to address in their benefit design and with their third party vendors the new embedded out-of-pocket maximum limitations on individuals that were...more
7/13/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Essential Health Benefits ,
HDHP ,
HSA ,
IRS ,
Non-Grandfathered Health Plans ,
Open Enrollment ,
Out-of-Pocket Expenses ,
Summary Plan Description ,
U.S. Treasury
On June 25, 2015, the United States Supreme Court released its much anticipated King v. Burwell decision regarding the validity of premium assistance issued by Federally-run Marketplaces. Chief Justice Roberts, writing for...more
Can you make apples out of applesauce? A first look at implications of the United States Supreme Court's decision (once again) in favor of the Affordable Care Act....more
A First Glance analysis of the United States Supreme Court's decision upholding Obamacare subsidies by Robert Projansky, partner at law firm Proskauer in New York, and head of the firm’s Health Care Reform Task Force....more
On April 14, 2015, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued its highly anticipated re-proposed regulation addressing when a person providing investment advice with respect to an employee benefit plan or individual retirement...more
Last week, the IRS released Notice 2015-16, in an effort to begin developing regulatory guidance for the Affordable Care Act's excise tax on high-cost health coverage (the "Excise Tax"), which will become effective beginning...more
On December 16, 2014, President Obama signed into law the $1.1 trillion Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2015 (Appropriations Act), which includes some significant changes to the rules governing...more
1/28/2015
/ Appropriations Bill ,
CBAs ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
Multiemployer Plan ,
New Legislation ,
PBGC ,
Pensions ,
Unions
This month's newsletter focuses on how Plan Trustees can appropriately settle ERISA breach of fiduciary duty claims in order to achieve "complete peace." The article provides a check list and discusses strategies for handling...more
In recent talks and appearances, representatives of the U.S. Department of Labor have issued a warning about new areas of focus of DOL audits and enforcement actions. While there are a number of different enforcement...more
Contributing employers to multiemployer plans were relieved by the Treasury Department’s interim guidance stating that they will not be subject to the employer shared responsibility payments under the Affordable Care Act...more
This month we discuss the evolving case law on the issue of whether unpaid employer contributions due under a collective bargaining agreement can be viewed as plan assets such that the individuals who decide to withhold such...more
On March 25, 2014, in a decision highly anticipated by employers, the U.S. Supreme Court held unanimously that certain severance payments paid to employees who were involuntarily terminated were taxable wages for purposes of...more
On March 5, 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services released a Final Rule addressing, among other things, transitional reinsurance fees payable in the 2014 through 2016 benefit years.
By way of background,...more
As previously reported, on Monday, February 10, 2014, the IRS released final regulations on the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) employer “shared responsibility” provisions, also known as the “pay-or-play” mandate. While the final...more
In This Issue:
- Labor and Employment and ERISA Class Actions After Wal-Mart and Comcast — Practice Points for Defendants (Part I – Commonality)*
- Agencies Release Guidance on HRAs, FSAs, and Employer Payment...more
11/22/2013
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Comcast ,
Competition ,
Damages ,
Discrimination ,
Dukes v Wal-Mart ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
FICA Taxes ,
Flexible Spending Accounts ,
FRCP 23 ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
HRA ,
IRS ,
Penalties ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 409A ,
Severance Pay ,
Tax Refunds ,
US v Windsor ,
Wal-Mart
Although some would argue that the next U.S. Supreme Court term is not shaping up to be as monumental as the last term, employers should have their eye on the recent decision of the Court to hear United States v. Quality...more
Last Friday, employers contributing to multiemployer plans received some good news. As expected, the Internal Revenue Service amended the transition rule for 2014 originally set forth in its proposed regulations on the pay or...more