We are now a few months into 2020 and we should all be feeling more SECURE in our retirement, as a result of the “Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019” (“SECURE Act”).  Below is a brief summary of the key changes that could impact qualified retirement…

A recent Chief Counsel Memorandum (“CCM”) makes clear that a qualified retirement plan can face disqualification if the plan sponsor cannot provide a copy of an executed plan document or plan amendment upon audit.

The question addressed in the CCM was whether a plan sponsor can argue, based on the…

The United States Supreme Court, in a per curiam decision, declined to address whether plan participants sufficiently alleged breach of fiduciary duty claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) against fiduciaries of an employee stock ownership plan for failing to disclose inside information that…

Two bills have been introduced in the Senate that would allow employers to make matching contributions under 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457(b) and SIMPLE plans as if the participant’s student loan payments were salary reduction contributions.  On May 13, Senator Ron Wyden (R-OR) reintroduced the Retirement Parity for Student Loans Act…

Our last installment of our overview of the Proposed Regulations under Code Section 162(m) focuses on the transition or grandfather rules (“Grandfather Rules”) under the Proposed Regulations.  Our prior installments have focused on the amendments to Code Section 162(m) enacted by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (“TCJA”)…

The prospect of a U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) investigation or Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) examination of an employee benefit plan can be daunting for any plan sponsor. Understanding the process and adopting best practices, however, can make the experience less intimidating and improve the results for all parties.

Enforcement…

This installment of the overview of the Proposed Regulations under Code Section 162(m) focuses on the definition of what is “applicable employee remuneration.” As a ‎reminder, Code Section 162(m) generally limits the compensatory deduction to the first $1 million of “applicable employee remuneration” paid by a publicly held corporation to…

Effective January 17, 2020, civil money penalties for certain violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) have been adjusted for inflation by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), as required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by…

Today’s installment of our overview of the Proposed Regulations under Code Section 162(m) highlights the expansion of who is a “covered employee.”  As a ‎reminder, Code Section 162(m) generally limits the compensatory deduction to the first $1 million of compensation paid by a publicly held corporation to each “covered employee.”  …