Last year, the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Form 15620 for taxpayers to make elections under section 83(b) of the Internal Revenue Code, an important part of US tax planning for founders, employees, board...more
Many companies are scrambling to quickly assess how to reduce the business impact of the upheaval to U.S. manufacturing and trading with the recent onslaught of tariffs threatened or imposed by the United States and the...more
I have worked at places that were so unpleasant that I consider myself lucky the vesting schedule was only six years. If they had the option, I’m convinced they would have implemented a 20-year vesting schedule. For me,...more
In a significant ruling on February 5, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit addressed the enforceability of an arbitration provision in an expired collective bargaining agreement (CBA) in the case of Xerox...more
One of the option of SECURE 2.0 is allowing employers to offer partricipants the right to Roth Employer contributions where they can pay the taxes upfront, and get tax free treatment on employer contributions....more
Forfeiture funds in 401(k) plans represent a unique asset pool with specific regulatory requirements and practical applications. Forfeiture funds arise when participants terminate employment with the company before becoming...more
The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act) introduced the Long-Term Part-Time (LTPT) rules. These rules aim to address the retirement needs of long-term part-time employees who have...more
Employers that sponsor 401(k) or 403(b) plans should be aware of eligibility and participation rules for their long-term, part-time (LTPT) employees. Historically, such plans could exclude employees who worked fewer than...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) gave plan sponsors an early Christmas gift with the release of new guidance late last year addressing several key provisions contained in SECURE 2.0. A welcome portion of the notice was...more
When the original SECURE Act was passed in 2019, compliance with its new long-term part-time employee rule seemed far in the future—way out to January 1, 2024. Well, that time is nearly upon us, so sponsors of 401(k) plans...more
ESOPs can pay fair market value for the stock: Stock purchased by an ESOP must be appraised by an independent third party expert working with a trustee for the ESOP who must also be independent from the seller. The ESOP is...more
Consider this fairly typical situation. Four years ago, employee Emma was granted an incentive stock option (ISO) to purchase 100,000 shares with an exercise price of $0.86 per share. Emma’s award is fully-vested and she...more
This blog is the first post in a four-part series. Part I will provide a high-level summary of stock option basics....more
The IRS recently issued Proposed Regulations that clarify and update existing rules governing how and when forfeitures must be used in qualified defined contribution (e.g., 401(k)) and defined benefit retirement plans. ...more
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, and Division T of the Act contains legislation dubbed the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0). SECURE 2.0 contains an important...more
Section 409A, the provision of the Internal Revenue Code that regulates the time and form of payment of nonqualified deferred compensation, contains a helpful exception for “short-term deferrals.” Specifically, Section 409A...more
The Eleventh Circuit recently affirmed an Alabama district court’s decision granting summary judgment in favor of Allstate Insurance Company in a consolidated ERISA class action challenging Allstate’s decision to stop paying...more
On June 14, 2021, the Colorado Supreme Court provided an answer to the long-standing question of whether “use-it-or-lose-it” vacation policies are permissible under the Colorado Wage Claim Act (CWCA). In the case of Nieto v....more
If you maintain a 401(k) plan (“Plan”), Section 112 of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (“SECURE Act”) imposes new rules for Plan participation by your part-time employees if they work at...more
With COVID and massive layoffs, we certainly have a partial termination problem to consider. If an employer has a turnover rate of 20% or more, that counts as a partial termination, and employers have to fully vest employees...more
All 401(k) retirement plans have special age and service rules that employees have to meet to become eligible to participate and to vest in employer contributions to those plans. In Notice 2020-68, the IRS explains the new...more
IRS Notice 2020-68 (Notice) provides the first round of guidance on a number of provisions under the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act) and the Bipartisan American Miners Act of...more
On December 20th, before the outbreak of COVID-19 and the resulting pandemic, President Trump signed into law the Setting Every Community Up For Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (the “SECURE Act”) and the Bipartisan...more
After you set up your new company, one of the first legal documents you will be thinking about is an incentive equity plan, sometimes referred to as an “option plan” or an “ESOP”. This is key to motivating early employees,...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued helpful guidance to plan sponsors of safe harbor 401(k) plans that are considering reducing or suspending safe harbor employer matching contributions or safe harbor nonelective...more