Nevin Adams

What Happened to the Average 401(k) Balance in 2016?

By Nevin Adams 1/4/2017

It was another year of double-digit gains for the average account balance of consistent 401(k) participants.An analysis by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) found that the average account balance for younger (25-34), less tenured (1-4 years) workers rose by nearly one-third... READ MORE

A Retirement Savings Santa Claus?

By Nevin Adams 12/21/2016

One certainly could argue that many Americans act as though at retirement some kind of benevolent elf will drop down their chimney with a bag full of cold cash from the North Pole.They behave as though, somehow, their bad savings behaviors throughout the year(s) notwithstanding, they’ll be able to... READ MORE

9th Circuit Resuscitates Excessive Fee Case

By Nevin Adams 12/20/2016

The plaintiffs in the only excessive fee suit to reach the Supreme Court will get another chance to make their case.The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco has now ordered a U.S. district court to rehear the Tibble vs. Edison International excessive 401(k) fee case. The opinion,... READ MORE

DOL Amends State-Run Retirement Plan Regulation

By Nevin Adams 12/19/2016

The Department of Labor (DOL) has made some changes to the final regulations regarding state-run retirement programs for private sector workers — specifically regarding those established by “state political subdivisions.”In a document slated to be published in the Federal Register on Dec. 20, the... READ MORE

6 Stocking Stuffers for Retirement Participants

By Nevin Adams 12/16/2016

I can remember as a kid paging through the pages of various Christmas catalogs, earmarking the pages that contained the various things that I hoped Santa Claus (or his emissaries, my parents) would take as hints.These days such things have been replaced by online “wish lists” — and if they’re not... READ MORE

A (Short) Tale of Two Class Actions

By Nevin Adams 12/15/2016

A federal judge granted class action status in two very different lawsuits Dec. 14, though both involved challenges to actions regarding 401(k) plan investments.The first of the lawsuits, Brotherston v. Putnam Investments, LLC (D. Mass., No. 1:15-cv-13825, electronic notice of order granting class... READ MORE

DC Appeals Court Responds to NAFA’s Fiduciary Rule Injunction Request

By Nevin Adams 12/15/2016

The National Association for Fixed Annuities (NAFA) has gotten a response to its request for an injunction pending appeal.In a short — some might say terse — response, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit noted that NAFA “has not satisfied the stringent requirements for an injunction... READ MORE

DC Appeals Court Responds to NAFA’s Fiduciary Rule Injunction Request

By Nevin Adams 12/15/2016

Things That the ‘Common Wisdom’ About Millennials Gets Wrong

By Nevin Adams 12/9/2016

To judge by the headlines, if there’s anybody in more trouble when it comes to retirement planning than Boomers, it’s Millennials. But are they really?Millennials are saving for retirement — likely earlier, and at higher rates than you did when you were their age.I’ve seen a number of surveys that... READ MORE

5 Things the DOL Wants You to Know About TDFs — That You May Have Overlooked

By Nevin Adams 12/2/2016

Target-date funds (TDFs) continue to expand in usage and popularity — but there are some things the Department of Labor (DOL) wants you to know about TDFs that you may have overlooked.When the DOL published its “Target Date Retirement Funds — Tips for ERISA Plan Fiduciaries” in 2013, I was pleased... READ MORE

Trump’s Treasury Pick Touts Tax Reform & Why That Matters

By Nevin Adams 12/2/2016

As expected, President-Elect Trump’s pick for Treasury Secretary has thrown down the gauntlet on tax reform — and that’s not likely to be good news for retirement plans.“Our No. 1 priority is tax reform. This will be the largest tax change since Reagan,” said Steven Mnuchin, the former banker who... READ MORE

Emergency Motion Filed in Fiduciary Litigation

By Nevin Adams 12/1/2016

Knocked down twice by the D.C. District Court, the National Association for Fixed Annuities has filed an emergency motion asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to halt the rule while NAFA’s appeal proceeds.Noting that “Nearly six critical months have passed since NAFA first sought a... READ MORE

Fiduciary Rule 2, Opponents 0

By Nevin Adams 11/29/2016

A second federal court has weighed in on the legal challenges presented to the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Fiduciary Rule.In a 63-page ruling, Judge Daniel Crabtree of the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas ruled that Market Synergy Group, Inc. failed to make the case that it was likely... READ MORE

D.C. District Court: No Pause on Fiduciary Ruling Pending Appeal

By Nevin Adams 11/28/2016

Though acknowledging that the fiduciary rule is likely to cause “significant changes” in how the industry operates, along with “substantial compliance costs,” and “economic losses,” the federal judge who recently rejected a legal challenge to the Labor Department’s fiduciary rule won’t hold up... READ MORE

What’s Going to Happen With the Fiduciary Rule?

By Nevin Adams 11/21/2016

Anyone who tells you they know what will happen with the fiduciary rule is probably… well, let’s just say they probably don’t. Here’s our current assessment…First, while the DOL fiduciary rule is on a list of recent regulations to review, it is currently not on the list of regulations designated... READ MORE

Another Day in Court for Fiduciary Rule

By Nevin Adams 11/21/2016

The Department of Labor’s (DOL) Fiduciary Rule got another day in court — and with at least a sense that it might not fare as well this time around.An edited assessment of the event by Erin Sweeney, an attorney at Miller & Chevalier who attended the Nov. 17 hearing in Dallas, characterized... READ MORE

Is Uncle Sam Encouraging Americans to Retire?

By Nevin Adams 11/18/2016

Americans may be talking about working longer, but does U.S. tax policy work against those who do?A new research paper, “Is Uncle Sam Inducing the Elderly to Retire?” notes that many, if not most, Baby Boomers appear at risk of suffering a major decline in their living standard in retirement, and... READ MORE

4 ‘Sure’ Things About Saving for Retirement That Aren’t

By Nevin Adams 11/18/2016

Three weeks ago, Chicago Cubs fans could hardly have been blamed for starting to think about “next year” — and two weeks ago, who would have imagined that we’d be talking about President-Elect Trump.Sometimes life takes unexpected turns, upending even the most “certain” outcomes. These so-called “... READ MORE

Ready to Rumble on Tax Reform?

By Nevin Adams 11/10/2016

Less than 24 hours after Donald Trump’s stunning victory, the Chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee was talking tax reform — and that could be ominous for retirement savings.While both presidential candidates had spoken during the campaign of the need for tax reform, the odds for action... READ MORE

Could the Fiduciary Regulation Be Trumped?

By Nevin Adams 11/9/2016

What most people — and nearly every pundit — thought could never happen — has.Though candidate Trump never specifically addressed the fiduciary regulation, he has consistently spoken of his intention to reduce the reach of government regulations, and it seems reasonable to think that he’d see the... READ MORE

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