News & Analysis as of

Employee Benefits Retirement Plan Department of Labor (DOL)

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

The DOL is Right to Scrap the Annuity Safe Harbor

The Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) is once again carrying water for the annuity industry, this time urging the Department of Labor to retain a regulatory safe harbor that’s already obsolete. The safe harbor in question,...more

Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

Benefits Monthly Minute - August 2025

The August Monthly Minute brings you the latest guidance on ERISA retirement plan investment in alternative assets and highlights a recent ruling in mental health parity nonquantitative treatment limitation (NQTL) litigation....more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Small Employers + PEPs: The DOL Wants Your Input

The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) just dropped an RFI (RIN 1210–AC10) and some limited guidance on pooled employer plans (PEPs), asking for public input, especially from small...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Just Push Play: The Fiduciary Reality Check For 401(k) Plan Sponsors

I t was 2001 when Aerosmith dropped Just Push Play, and while it was no Rocks or Toys in the Attic, it packed a punch. That title track? A distorted, energetic anthem about dropping the hesitation and just going forward. No...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

Trump Executive Order Calls for Review of Alternative Assets in 401(k) Plans

Fox Rothschild LLP on

President Trump has issued an Executive Order (EO) that could reshape how alternative assets are treated in defined contribution retirement plans. The directive requires the Department of Labor (DOL) to revisit its past...more

Haynes Boone

DOL Rescinds its Prior Guidance on Alternative Assets in 401(k) Plans

Haynes Boone on

On August 12, 2025, the DOL issued a press release (the “Release”) announcing that it is rescinding its prior guidance regarding the use of alternative assets as an investment option under a 401(k) plan’s investment menu....more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

In a Rare Move, the DOL Backs the Employer in a Forfeiture Allocation Case—But Don’t Pop the Champagne Just Yet

Sometimes, in the strange world of ERISA litigation, you get a surprise. And in Hutchins v. Hewlett Packard, we got one: the Department of Labor, yes, that DOL, the one whose name alone strikes fear into the heart of many...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Why I Love Bitcoin—But Still Don’t Want It in Your 401(k)

Let me start with a confession: I love Bitcoin. I admire what it represents—decentralization, monetary freedom, borderless transactions, and the kind of disruption that makes traditional finance sweat. I hold it, I follow it,...more

Morgan Lewis - ML Benefits

Latest Executive Order Could Redefine Retirement Investing

The US administration recently issued an executive order to expand access to alternative investments in ERISA-governed retirement accounts. The order titled Democratizing Access to Alternative Investments for America's...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

The Fraud That Is Matt Hutcheson

I’ve been in the retirement plan business for 27 years, and during that time, I’ve seen the best and the worst it has to offer. But without a doubt, the most despicable person I’ve encountered is Matt Hutcheson. Matt paraded...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

Retirement Revolution: Expanding Access to Private Credit in 401(k)s

Troutman Pepper Locke on

On August 7, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing federal agencies, particularly the Department of Labor, to work on expanding access to alternative investments for participants in 401(k) and other...more

Epstein Becker & Green

We’re Not in Kansas Anymore: ESG, Cryptocurrency, and Alternative Asset Investments in 401(k) Plans, Oh My!

Epstein Becker & Green on

What You Need to Know - The Trump Administration has shifted away from Biden-era rules related to certain investments, like alternative asset investments, ESG, and cryptocurrency in 401(k) plans....more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Selecting Annuity Providers for Retirement Plans: Tips for Success

When a plan administrator selects an insurer to provide annuities for a retirement plan subject to ERISA, it is engaging in a fiduciary act that must be conducted prudently. Mistakes in this process can expose the plan...more

Cooley LLP

Private Equity and Venture Capital Investments for 401(k) Plans?

Cooley LLP on

On August 7, President Donald Trump signed an executive order (Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors) that has been widely – and mistakenly – reported to open 401(k) plan assets to “alternative...more

Jones Day

White House Opens Door to Broader Inclusion of Alternative Assets in Defined Contribution Retirement Plans

Jones Day on

A hotly anticipated August 7, 2025, executive order, "Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors" ("EO"), aims to reduce regulatory barriers and significantly expand access to "alternative...more

Verrill

Coming Soon to Your 401(k) Plan: Tontines and Other Exotic Investments!

Verrill on

Participants in 401(k) plans and other defined contribution retirement plans may soon have the opportunity to invest their plan accounts in a variety of high-risk and potentially high-return assets. Touted as an effort to...more

Mayer Brown

US Department of Labor Solicits Feedback and Provides Guidance to Smaller Employers on Pooled Employer Plans

Mayer Brown on

On July 28, 2025, the US Department of Labor (DOL) issued a Request for Information (RFI) regarding the current usage and operations of pooled employer plans (PEPs), as well as obstacles that are discouraging smaller...more

Carlton Fields

Plan Sponsor and Asset Manager Considerations Under 401(k) Alternatives Executive Order

Carlton Fields on

On August 7, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order titled “Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors,” designed to open the use of alternative investments, including private equity and actively...more

Haynes Boone

DOL Approves the Use of Forfeitures to Offset Employer Contributions

Haynes Boone on

In a lawsuit currently under appeal at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the court has been asked to decide whether the plan administrator violated its fiduciary duties of prudence and loyalty under ERISA when...more

Haynes Boone

Compliance Reminder for Executive Top Hat Plans

Haynes Boone on

Plan sponsors of nonqualified deferred compensation plans (often referred to as “top hat” plans) maintain such plans because they provide tax and economic benefits to covered executives without being subject to many of...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

The Forfeiture Fiasco: Why the DOL and Common Sense are on the Right Side of the HP Case

It’s not often you see the U.S. Department of Labor jumping into the legal ring to back plan sponsors, but when they do, you know something bigger is at stake than just one plan participant’s gripe. That’s exactly what...more

PilieroMazza PLLC

Weekly Update for Government Contractors and Commercial Businesses – August 2025

PilieroMazza PLLC on

Government Accountability Office (GAO) Report: Whistleblowers, VA Should Assess Data and Monitor Settlement Agreements to Better Ensure Protections - On July 31, GAO released a report reviewing the characteristics of VA...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Bitcoin Over $120K? That Doesn’t Mean It Belongs in Your 401(k)

Bitcoin has blown past $120,000 and, predictably, the buzz is back. Advisors are getting questions. Participants are curious. And yes, some plan sponsors are starting to wonder if it’s time to add crypto to their 401(k)...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Quick Tips for Plan Sponsors Who Want to Stay Out of Trouble

If you’re a 401(k) plan sponsor, you don’t need to be an ERISA expert—you just need to avoid doing dumb things. Here are a few quick tips to help you stay on the right side of your fiduciary duties and keep your participants...more

Ropes & Gray LLP

DOL Sheds Light on the Fiduciary Responsibilities That Arise with Pooled Employer Plans PEPs

Ropes & Gray LLP on

On July 28, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued some new interpretive guidance as part of a request for information (“RFI”) about pooled employer plans (“PEPs”) and an employer’s fiduciary responsibilities that...more

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