Navigating the CFPB's Controversial Interpretive Rule on BNPL Products — The Consumer Finance Podcast
Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast Episode: The Regulation of Negative Option Consumer Contracts – Silence as Consent
CFPB's Focus on Student Loan Servicing: Insights from the Office of Servicemember Affairs Report — The Consumer Finance Podcast
The Evolving Landscape of B2B Payments: Regulatory Trends and Financial Practices Explained — Payments Pros – The Payments Law Podcast
FTC and CFPB Focus on Medical, Rental Debt Collection Practices
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau vs. the Video Game Industry
Exploring the CFPB's Stance on AI in Financial Services — The Consumer Finance Podcast
Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast Episode: Regulators Escalate Focus on the Risks of Bank Relationships with Fintechs and Other Third Parties
Breaking Down Credit Reporting With Credit Builders Alliance — FCRA Focus Podcast
The Standard Formula Podcast | Insurers in Difficulty: Staying Compliant Under Solvency II
Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast Episode: The Demise of the Chevron Doctrine – Part II
The CFPB's Report on Negative Equity in Auto Lending — Crossover Episode With Moving the Metal Podcast — The Consumer Finance Podcast
Welcome Trevor Salter: A Deep Dive Into Financial Services Transactions — Payments Pros Podcast
Fintech Focus Podcast | Managing a Workforce in a Regulated Environment
Why Retailers and Merchants Should Pay Attention to the CFPB - The Consumer Finance Podcast
Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast Episode: The Demise of the Chevron Doctrine – Part I
Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast Episode: The Cantero Opinion: The Supreme Court Leaves National Bank Preemption in Limbo
Navigating Emerging Privacy Issues in Financial Services — The Consumer Finance Podcast
2024 State Legislative Review: Key Payment Laws and Their Impacts — Payments Pros – The Payments Law Podcast
CFPB Warns of Manipulation in Digital Comparison Shopping Tools
The Federation of Americans for Consumer Choice v. Department of Labor case was the first case challenging the Department of Labor’s 2024 retirement security rule defining who is an investment advice fiduciary. It was...more
The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) final regulations broaden the definition of fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to include more investment advisors. However, the eight hundred pages of...more
The Department of Labor’s final definition of “investment advice” fiduciary regulation makes many more individuals fiduciaries under both the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and the Internal Revenue Code. Where for...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently issued final, new regulations (the “rules”) regarding who is considered an investment advice fiduciary that are slated to become generally effective on September 23, 2024, as well...more
Executive Summary - Many investment advisers and other financial institutions rely on the Department of Labor’s QPAM Exemption when providing services to, and transacting with, employer-sponsored retirement plans, individual...more
On April 23, 2024, the Department of Labor published its long-awaited final retirement security rule broadening the definition of who is an “investment advice fiduciary” under section 3(21) of the Employee Retirement Income...more
On April 23, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published the “Retirement Security Rule: Definition of an Investment Advice Fiduciary,” which makes changes to the definition of “ fiduciary” for purposes of the Employee...more
On April 3, 2024, the Department of Labor (DOL) released its final rule amending Prohibited Transaction Exemption 84-14 (PTE 84-14). PTE 84-14 exempts from ERISA’s prohibited transaction rules certain transactions between...more
On this episode of Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion, host Brydon DeWitt is joined by Ali Pino, a principal and retirement plan consultant with Spherient Advisors, who discusses the proposed Department of Labor rule...more
On October 31, the Department of Labor (DOL) released a proposed rule (the Proposed Rule) aiming to redefine and expand who qualifies as an “investment advice fiduciary” under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of...more
On Friday, November 3, the Federal Register published the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) latest attempt to redefine who is an “investment advice fiduciary” under ERISA. In conjunction with the regulatory proposal, the...more
On September 21, 2023, a Texas federal court dismissed an action commenced by more than two dozen Republican state attorneys general challenging a 2022 Department of Labor (DOL) Rule that addressed consideration of ESG...more
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
On June 21, two Republican members of Congress renewed efforts to enact legislation that arguably would restrict investment managers from taking into account ESG considerations in investing on behalf of retirement funds. U.S....more
One of the great joys of my practice is networking with other plan providers. I enjoy meeting people and meeting advisors out there that I can help, most times at zero cost. The retirement plan business is a...more
Does combining a recommendation to take a rollover from a retirement plan with post-rollover advice mean that advice is being provided on a “regular basis” under the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) five-part test for fiduciary...more
The Department of Labor (the DOL) has released its final rule clarifying how and when ERISA fiduciaries may consider ESG factors in making investment decisions for a plan. The rule also offers substantial guidance on the...more
The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) proposed updates to their Voluntary Fiduciary Compliance Program (VFCP), which would allow a self-correction component. The EBSA proposal includes a...more
On Friday, for the second week in a row, the Ninth Circuit reversed dismissal of a 401(k) plan excessive fee litigation challenging the offering of retail share classes of mutual funds instead of cheaper institutional share...more
ERISA generally requires retirement plan fiduciaries to invest prudently, diversify assets to minimize the risk of large losses, and act solely in the interest of plan participants. These duties have been interpreted as...more
The U.S. Department of Labor has recently issued a proposal for meeting fiduciary duties when evaluating retirement plan investments having environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors....more
Effective February 1, 2022, the Department of Labor (DOL) began enforcement of portions of the Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02 (PTE 2020-02 or the Exemption). ...more
On December 18, 2020, the United States Department of Labor (the DOL) adopted Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02, Improving Investment Advice for Workers & Retirees (PTE 2020-02 or the Exemption), a new prohibited...more
On October 14, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (the “DOL”) published in the Federal Register a new proposed regulation (the “Proposed Rules”) on fiduciary responsibility in...more
As businesses return to work after Labor Day 2021, a principal focus for companies that serve US retirement plans will be the impending December 20 enforcement date for the Labor Department’s (DOL) latest fiduciary guidance...more