News & Analysis as of

Fiduciary Duty Pensions Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)

Latham & Watkins LLP

US Government Reopens Discussion of Private Pension Investments Expectations

Latham & Watkins LLP on

The Department of Labor has taken two recent actions that indicate where the approach to retirement investment policy may go under the new administration....more

Morgan Lewis - ML Benefits

DOL Issues Temporary Enforcement Policy for Small Amount Transfers to State Unclaimed Property Funds

The US Department of Labor recently issued Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB) 2025-01, a temporary enforcement policy regarding the transfer of small retirement plan benefits to state unclaimed property funds. This development...more

Verrill

Does ERISA Work?

Verrill on

On Labor Day, September 2, 1974, Gerald Ford signed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) into law. ERISA governs the employee benefit plans (i.e., retirement and welfare plans) of most private employers in...more

Jackson Walker

2025 Regulatory Review: Implications for Retirement Plans and Employer Actions

Jackson Walker on

The first few months of 2025 brought the potential for many changes. On January 20, 2025, one of the Executive Orders pulled back all proposed regulations that had been issued in the last 60 days, including proposed...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

First Rulings on Pension Risk Transfer — ERISA Class Actions Reach Opposite Conclusions on Article III Standing

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

The first two district court opinions deciding whether plaintiffs have Article III standing to challenge pension risk transfers have reached opposite conclusions. One case will proceed to discovery, and the other has been...more

Morgan Lewis

DOL’s VFCP Final Rule Adds Limited ‘Self-Correction’ Program for Late Contributions, Participant Loan Failures

Morgan Lewis on

The Employee Benefits Security Administration recently released its final rule amending and restating the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program, along with corresponding amendments to a related class exemption, Prohibited...more

Groom Law Group, Chartered

DOL Finalizes Update to Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program

On January 15, 2025, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued notice amending its Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (“VFCP”), along with related final amendments to Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2002-51 (“PTE 2002-51”),...more

McDermott Will & Emery

Trump Places DOL’s ESOP Proposals in Regulatory Moratorium

On January 16, 2025, the US Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) released two pieces of guidance that, if finalized, would dramatically change the landscape for fiduciaries responsible...more

Pullman & Comley - Labor, Employment and...

Retirement Plan Update – Forfeitures are New Focus of Fiduciary Breach Litigation

Many employer-sponsored defined contributions plans, including 401(k) profit sharing plans and money purchase pension plans include a vesting schedule – a period over which a plan participant earns a nonforfeitable right to...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Exciting Update: Self-Correction for Delinquent Contributions Now Possible Under the DOL’s VFCP

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

On January 14, 2025, the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) within the Department of Labor (DOL) updated its Voluntary Fiduciary Compliance Program (VFCP). The VFCP allows plan officials to correct certain...more

Verrill

DOL Announces Temporary Enforcement Policy Regarding Transfer of Small Retirement Benefit Payments of Missing Participants to...

Verrill on

Retirement plan fiduciaries have a new option for handling small benefit payments owed to missing participants and beneficiaries thanks to a temporary enforcement policy announced by the Department of Labor (“DOL”) earlier...more

DLA Piper

Supreme Court Debates ERISA Exemptions in Cunningham v. Cornell University

DLA Piper on

The US Supreme Court heard argument on Wednesday, January 22, 2025 from Cornell University and its employees over dismissal of a class action alleging that Cornell University’s retirement plan paid unreasonable recordkeeping...more

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive...

Fourth Circuit Approves Award of Estimated Delinquent Contributions

Multiemployer benefit plans generally require contributing employers to submit “remittance reports” that identify the employees that performed covered work, the type of work performed, and the amount of time worked. Plans...more

The Wagner Law Group

District Court Grants Motion to Dismiss Forfeiture Complaint

The Wagner Law Group on

Last year, we alerted you to the filing of several class action lawsuits alleging that plan fiduciaries violated their duties of prudence and loyalty under Title I of ERISA by using forfeitures to reduce employer...more

Snell & Wilmer

Cheers to 50 Years of ERISA: A Major Milestone in Employee Protection

Snell & Wilmer on

As the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) celebrates its 50th anniversary, it offers us an opportunity to reflect on its transformative impact on employee benefits and retirement security. Signed into law on...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Conflicting Decisions Foreshadow Upcoming Disputes in ERISA 401(K) Forfeiture Class Actions

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Conflicting orders on motions to dismiss from two California courts foreshadow issues for a new theory of ERISA liability. Employers have faced a recent wave of novel ERISA class actions that challenge the reallocation of...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Use of Plan Forfeitures Not the Slam Dunk It Used to Be

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

A recent rash of class action lawsuits in California claim that using forfeitures to reduce future employer contributions to tax-qualified retirement plans runs afoul of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)....more

The Wagner Law Group

District Court Denies Motion to Dismiss Forfeiture Complaint

The Wagner Law Group on

In December, we suggested, contrary to popular opinion, that serious attention should be given to the filing of several class action lawsuits alleging that plan fiduciaries violated ERISA by applying forfeitures to reduce...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

EDVA Judge Allows Pension Investment Expert to Testify in Class Action ERISA Case

Troutman Pepper Locke on

A recent decision by Senior District Judge Robert Payne on a Daubert motion in class action litigation against a pension fund offers some helpful lessons on challenging expert witnesses in the EDVA. Trauernicht v. Genworth...more

Bricker Graydon LLP

Pension Risk Transfer Considerations and Recent Litigation - A Case of Imprudent “Passing the Buck” or Sound Risk Management?

Bricker Graydon LLP on

Over the last several years, numerous large pension plan sponsors have transferred billions of dollars in financial risk related to their pension plan benefit obligations to insurance companies through the purchase of group...more

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP

Cascading Into Spring March 2024 - Cascading Security

With the increasing complexity of fund structures and the growing prevalence of US Pension Funds in the European market, we have seen an uptick in the number of queries particularly from European banks and funds around how to...more

Bricker Graydon LLP

Unicorn, Ostrich or Okapi? Fiduciary Duties for Governmental Retirement Plan Sponsors

Bricker Graydon LLP on

Most retirement plan sponsors know that ERISA - the federal law that imposes duties (and liability for breaching those duties) on certain individuals and entities that are defined as plan fiduciaries – is the primary source...more

Dickinson Wright

Mastering Retirement Plan Forfeitures: A Deep Dive into IRS’s 2023 Proposals & Fiduciary Litigation Trends

Dickinson Wright on

When a participant terminates employment without being fully vested in their qualified retirement plan account, the non-vested portion of the account is a “forfeiture.” While forfeitures are a common element of most...more

Nossaman LLP

Federal Court Rejects States’ Challenge to DOL’s ESG Investing Rule

Nossaman LLP on

On September 21, 2023, a federal judge in Texas granted summary judgment in, and thus dismissed, a lawsuit filed by the Attorneys General of 25 states and other interested parties challenging a final rule issued by the U.S....more

Foley & Lardner LLP

Does the Supreme Court’s Analysis in Thole v U.S., Bank, N.A. Apply to Welfare Benefit Plans?

Foley & Lardner LLP on

In Thole v. U.S. Bank, N.A., 140 S Ct. 1615 (2020), the Supreme Court, in a five to four decision authored by Justice Kavanaugh, held that participants in an ERISA defined benefit pension plan did not have standing under...more

88 Results
 / 
View per page
Page: of 4

"My best business intelligence, in one easy email…"

Your first step to building a free, personalized, morning email brief covering pertinent authors and topics on JD Supra:
*By using the service, you signify your acceptance of JD Supra's Privacy Policy.
- hide
- hide