Advertisement
ERISA
Plaintiffs have had their appeal of a district court’s dismissal of their excessive fee suit rejected by the appellate court.
Appellants Cole Matney and Paul Watts[1]—participants in the Barrick Gold 401(k) plan—filed suit against Barrick Gold of North America, Inc., Barrick Gold’s Board of...
READ MORE
Noting that “prolonged investigations carried out by federal agencies, such as EBSA, create tremendous strain on retirement plan sponsors,” two key House Republicans are pushing back.
In a Sept. 19 letter to Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su, Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), chair of the Education...
READ MORE
Noting that “a decision in this appeal has the potential to significantly affect Amici’s members, which include plan sponsors and fiduciaries…,” a group of industry trade groups has filed in support of fiduciaries and providers in a federal court.
More specifically, the ERISA Industry Committee (...
READ MORE
The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration is seeking nominations to fill five vacancies to serve three-year terms on the ERISA Advisory Council, known officially as the Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans.
Nominations are being accepted for one...
READ MORE
The Department of Labor (DOL) sent a new version of a proposed fiduciary rule to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) late Sept. 8 for review.
Known officially as “Conflict of Interest in Investment Advice,” it would redefine fiduciary investment advice under ERISA.
According to a post on...
READ MORE
Less than a year after being sued for the standard series of alleged missteps, the parties in an excessive fee suit have struck a “deal.”
The plaintiff bringing suit just a year ago was Grace Angelo (she was later joined in the action by Kerstin Thompson as a second class representative)—the...
READ MORE
Pension risk transfers (PRTs) are, at their core, financial transactions. But there are other important factors to keep in mind when contemplating and conducting a PRT—among them, fiduciary responsibility.
With PRTs heating up lately, a discussion of how fiduciary duty factors in may be timely...
READ MORE
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has updated certain information and rates relevant to premiums.
Premium Funding Targets
The PBGC has updated the information it makes available concerning the interest rates used to determine the "premium funding target" (that is, the present value...
READ MORE
The Department of Labor (DOL) on Aug. 28 announced that its Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) will extend the grace period to obtain new Login.gov credentials for the EFAST2 filing system until Dec. 31, 2023.
The ERISA Filing Acceptance System (EFAST2) is the system by which the...
READ MORE
An apparent electronic glitch with a regulatory filing system is causing confusion.
More specifically, the American Retirement Association (ARA) is hearing from many members regarding erroneous 2022 8955-SSA late filing notices.
It appears that several plan sponsors for whom complete Form 8955-...
READ MORE
The EFAST2 website authentication process is being modernized in 2023. Some changes have already taken place; some deadlines are still ahead—including a grace period that ends Sept. 1.
The Department of Labor (DOL) is changing the method of logging in to the EFAST2 website with an EFAST2-issued...
READ MORE
The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has issued a request for information (RFI) on SECURE 2.0 mandates related to ERISA’s reporting and disclosure provisions.
Several sections of SECURE 2.0 establish new, or revise existing, ERISA reporting and disclosure...
READ MORE
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the DOL’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) Ali Khawar on July 25 shared with delegates at the 2023 NAPA D.C. Fly-In Forum the key priorities of the department, including new guidance on SECURE 2.0, an update to the fiduciary rule, and...
READ MORE
A “painstakingly negotiated global Settlement” of some $124 million involving multiple suits (and the involvement of the Labor Department) has been reached in a long-standing ERISA suit.
The original suit was filed in March 2016 by Clive Cooper, a former employee (and participant) of DST Systems,...
READ MORE
Until recently, the federal law governing most private retirement was seldom a subject of national headlines—let alone the subject of an Instagram reel by the Speaker of the House.
But Speaker Kevin McCarthy and others have proclaimed that it now allows investment managers for many workplace...
READ MORE
An important deadline fast approaches for many plans—the Form 5500 is due to be filed by July 31.
Plan sponsors of calendar-year plans must file their Form 5500 series returns by the last day of the seventh month after the plan year ends, which for calendar year plans is July 31 of the year after...
READ MORE
We are all painfully aware of the complexity of the tax and labor laws we work with. It is, therefore, no surprise that Congress makes drafting mistakes when amending these laws—particularly with voluminous and technical laws, such as the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022.
Unfortunately, once enacted, many...
READ MORE
A federal judge has approved the recommendation to certify a class in a proprietary fund suit—determining that even a “well-educated, well-informed, and careful investor”—might lack actual knowledge of fiduciary breaches.
The Suit
The participant-plaintiff in question here is one Brian Waldner,...
READ MORE
The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) on April 25 issued frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the annual funding notice requirements for multiemployer pension plans that received special financial assistance (SFA) funds under the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act...
READ MORE
Terms of a proprietary fund suit settlement with Mutual of America have been revealed.
The plaintiffs had claimed the plan fiduciaries had “an imprudent and disloyal preference for its own proprietary funds.” Represented in the action by Nichols Kaster PLLP, the participant/plaintiffs had claimed...
READ MORE