Category Archives: Newsletter

As a result of the fiscal cliff tax legislation recently passed by Congress, employers who have or add a “designated Roth account” option to their existing 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457 plans plan can permit employees to transfer any existing … Continue reading →

In a recent case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held that a non-fiduciary who knowingly participates in a fiduciary’s breach of one of ERISA’s prohibited transaction provisions may be subject to the disgorgement of the … Continue reading →

A recent case weighed in on the issue of whether one plan fiduciary may seek contribution from other fiduciary for claims of breach of fiduciary duty. The issue is one that has divided federal courts. Participants in an employee stock … Continue reading →

Plan Disbursement to Former Spouse Procured by Her Fraud Not an Impermissible Forfeiture In an interesting Federal Appellate Court decision, it was held that a plan participant had no recourse against the Plan where his former spouse fraudulently procured a … Continue reading →

How Long Should You Retain Retirement Plan Records? We get asked this question frequently. A recent court decision makes it appropriate to discuss the issue again. The answer may surprise you. ERISA has two provisions that pertain to records retention. … Continue reading →

Plan Administrator Decision to Exclude Stepchildren from the Term “Children” Used in the Plan Upheld One of a plan  administrator’s responsibilities is to administer the plan in accordance with the terms of the plan document. Many times this requires the … Continue reading →

The Current Status of Same Sex Marriage Under ERISA The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA) is a comprehensive Federal law regulating retirement and welfare benefit plans. Because it is a Federal law it “pre-empts” or … Continue reading →

Suit Against Ex-spouse who Waived 401(k) Benefit in Divorce not Foreclosed Even Though Deceased Spouse Failed to Remove her as the Designated Beneficiary In 2000, William Kensinger, Jr. enrolled in a 401(k) plan sponsored by his employer, URL Pharma, Inc. … Continue reading →

IRS Revises Procedures for Determination Letters Most of our clients have adopted a retirement plan on a document that has been pre-approved by IRS (including prototype plans and volume submitter plans).   Clients that adopt pre-approved plans may either (i) rely … Continue reading →