“Top hat plans” —non-qualified deferred compensation plans that can be exempt from most of the requirements of Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 or ERISA—can be a useful tool for employers looking to provide deferred compensation benefits to certain key employees. However, care must be taken to ensure compliance with the relevant requirements of ERISA and Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code. Darren Goodman, Megan Monson, and Jessica I. Kriegsfeld of Lowenstein’s Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits Group discuss how to structure such plans to make them compliant.

Speakers:

Darren Goodman, Vice Chair, Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits

Megan Monson, Partner, Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits

Jessica Kriegsfeld, Associate, Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits