PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Trends in Recordkeeper Consolidation and Due Diligence
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Exploring the Value of Qualified Default Investment Alternatives
The Form 5500: What All Employers and Plan Administrators Need to Know and How to Avoid Costly Fines
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Cautionary Tales for Preapproved Plan Documents
DOL Clarifies Timing of Lifetime Income Disclosures in Benefit Statements
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Payroll Integration for Plan Sponsors
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Plan Administrators’ 2020 Year-End Checklist
Cutting Costs With Employee Benefit Plans (Part 5 of 5) – Implementation
Cutting Costs With Employee Benefit Plans (Part 4 of 5) – Retirement Plan Costs
Cutting Costs With Employee Benefit Plans (Part 3 of 5) – Medical Benefit Costs
Cutting Costs With Employee Benefit Plans (Part 2 of 5) – Identifying Potential Targets
Cutting Costs With Employee Benefit Plans (Part 1 of 5) – Using Benefit Plans to Save Money
CARES Act – Retirement Plan Distributions and Loans: Troutman Sanders and Pepper Hamilton COVID-19 Issues for Employers Podcast Series
Blakes Continuity Podcast: COVID-19: The Regulatory Impact on Pensions
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Plan Administrators’ 2019 Year-End Checklist
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently issued an opinion with critical implications for the healthcare industry. This court decision clarifies the expansive reach of the Employee Retirement Income Security...more
It’s hard to believe that 2024 is well underway! That means it’s a perfect time to think about an issue that might get lost in the summertime and (dare I already say) year-end shuffles: fiduciary committees. ERISA imposes...more
Plan administrators should review actions to be taken before the end of 2023 and focus on what to expect for 2024. This checklist addresses plan amendments, notices and other considerations for qualified retirement plans,...more
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) is a body of federal laws and regulations that govern the provision and operation of certain employer-sponsored benefit plans. While its structure and requirements...more
The most valuable feedback is something you can act on. A broker who takes a consultative approach doesn’t just give you options but uses their expertise to provide actionable insights. Let’s face it—not all Human Resources...more
The Biden administration intends to end the national emergency and public health emergency declarations (Emergency Declarations) attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic on May 11, 2023. The COVID-19 pandemic brought multiple...more
Benefit plan sponsors sometimes send out Summary Plan Descriptions (SPDs) having given too little thought to the legal consequences. Two recent cases illustrate how an organization can end up in serious and costly litigation...more
Courts around the country continue to approach the enforceability of class-action waivers and arbitration provisions in ERISA plan documents differently. This alert discusses recent decisions addressing these issues in ERISA...more
Nokia of America is one of the latest employers hit with a class-action lawsuit over the fees in its 401(k) plan....more
This month’s Friday Five discusses cases that focus on what information properly constitutes the administrative record before the court on which a decision must be based. One case explores the ERISA Records Rule which limits...more
While considering year-end tasks and planning for the upcoming year, qualified plan sponsors should think about whether they need to revise and/or reissue their summary plan descriptions (SPDs) in 2022....more
An ERISA plan administrator must, if requested by a claimant contesting an adverse benefits determination, produce a copy of an audio recording or transcript of a telephone conversation between the claimant and a plan...more
The Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued new guidance on best practices for maintaining cybersecurity in connection with ERISA plans (the Guidance). The Guidance, which is intended for sponsors, fiduciaries, record...more
For the first time, the U.S. Department of Labor's (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has released cybersecurity guidance aimed at protecting workers' retirement benefits. The guidance, which was released...more
In Ruderman v. Liberty Mut. Grp., Inc., 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 40516 (N.D.N.Y. Mar. 4, 2021), a New York district court held that just because an insurer might have been likely to deny a claim does not excuse a claimant's...more
In a June 14, 2021 information letter, the US Department of Labor (DOL) opined that a claimant appealing an adverse benefit determination under a plan covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended...more
Hinshaw's LHD/ERISA Advisor remains committed to bringing you recent legal developments that may guide your life, health, and disability litigation strategy and claims decisions....more
As an ERISA attorney, my retainer agreements are pretty straight and clear. Governed by the laws that govern attorney behavior, I have no choice. Yet, Third Party Administrators (TPAs) don’t have guidelines to live by. ...more
In response to the deluge of ERISA class action breach of fiduciary duty claims, plan sponsors and fiduciaries have increasingly sought to compel individual arbitration of such claims pursuant to arbitration clauses in...more
As we look ahead to 2021, we start our second edition of Hinshaw's LHD/ERISA Advisor by reporting on key cases that closed out 2020. Through The Advisor, our team of attorneys nationwide strive to report on legal developments...more
Being an ERISA attorney for a couple of third-party administration (TPA) firms when I first started helps you develop a sense of humor because there are too many people I was associated with who had absolutely zero training...more
It’s great that the Department of Labor (DOL) has finally embraced the electronic disclosure of important ERISA notices. It took them a long time, but when your business is trying to protect participant rights, this is what...more
The Department of Labor (DOL) issued final electronic disclosure rules for retirement plans on May 27, 2020 (2020 Safe Harbor). We are already fielding questions about these new rules and have provided answers here to some of...more
Retirement plans with more than 100 participants require a CPA audit for their Form 5500. However, small plans with less than 100 participants may sometimes require an audit. This often happens when more than 5% of the Plan’s...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Because everything has a coronavirus angle now….this blog post covers various issues and considerations plan sponsors and administrators should keep in mind as the coronavirus outbreak continues to...more