The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently issued guidance on best practices for maintaining cybersecurity directed to plan sponsors, fiduciaries, record-keepers and participants of employee benefit plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”). While some prior cybersecurity guidance has been issued for certain
IRS Extends Relief Allowing Remote Witnessing Procedures for Certain Retirement Plan Elections
As the COVID-19 pandemic drags on, administrators of defined benefit pension plans continue to field questions about the notary requirement related to certain participant and spousal elections. For qualified retirement plans subject to the qualified joint and survivor annuity rules (such as defined benefit pension plans), an alternative form of
Helpful New Guidance on Locating Missing and Nonresponsive Retirement Plan Participants
Retirement plans of all sizes often find themselves faced with participants or beneficiaries who are either missing or do not respond to communication. The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has long been concerned with how plans try to locate and contact these ‘missing’ participants and, more importantly, how they try
IRS Announces 2021 Retirement Plan Limits – Most Limits Remain Unchanged
The Internal Revenue Service announced the 2021 cost-of-living adjustments to the dollar limitations for qualified retirement plans and other benefits, and the Social Security Administration announced its own cost-of-living adjustments for 2021. Most of the dollar limits, including the elective deferral contribution limit for 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans and
Has Your Retirement Plan Experienced a Partial Plan Termination?
The economic uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many employers to furlough or layoff a significant percentage of their workforce. These workforce reductions may inadvertently cause a “partial termination” of the employer’s qualified retirement plan triggering a requirement that all affected participants become 100% vested in their plan accounts.
Feeling Secure in Retirement: Changes Made by the Secure Act that may Affect Qualified Retirement Plans
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
Signing and Retaining Plan Documents is Crucial for Qualified Retirement Plans
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
U.S. Supreme Court Remands “Stock Drop” Case Back to Second Circuit
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
U.S. Supreme Court’s 2019-2020 Term Includes Three ERISA Cases
It has been several years since the US Supreme Court issued a decision in a case involving the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). In the upcoming term, the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review three ERISA cases. Below is a summary of the ERISA cases that
Locke Lord QuickStudy: SEC Amends Rule 701 to Increase Disclosure Threshold and Seeks Comment on Further Changes for Compensatory Awards
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On July 18, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted an amendment to Rule 701 increasing the threshold that triggers the Rule’s disclosure requirements. As background, Rule 701 provides an exemption from the registration requirements of