On April 1, 2021, the Ninth Circuit became the third circuit court to conclude that a forum-selection clause in an ERISA 401(k) plan is enforceable. The Ninth Circuit thus denied a petition for mandamus seeking to overturn a district court decision transferring an ERISA action from the Northern District of California to the District of … Continue Reading
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 employment agreements or plan documents. As discussed in an earlier blog post, the Ninth Circuit previously enforced such an arbitration provision when … Continue Reading
In this episode of the Proskauer Benefits Brief, partner Robert Projansky and special guest Garrett Fenton, senior attorney at Microsoft Corporation, discuss cyber theft of 401(k) plan accounts. Tune in as we discuss why 401(k) plans are vulnerable to cyber security breaches, what kinds of cyber security frauds we are seeing in 401(k) plans, evolving litigation on … Continue Reading
A federal district court in Georgia recently dismissed claims brought by a participant in the Rollins, Inc. 401(k) Plan (the “Plan”), on behalf of a putative class of all plan participants, alleging that defendants breached their fiduciary duties by charging excessive recordkeeping fees, selecting and retaining costly and underperforming funds in the Plan and failing … Continue Reading
Among the many claims brought by plaintiffs challenging investment offerings in defined contribution plans is the claim that plans should offer stable value funds in lieu of more conservative capital preservation funds, such as money market funds and deposit accounts that are insured by the U.S. government. Plaintiffs have argued that stable value funds are … Continue Reading
On June 3, 2020, the Department of Labor (the “DOL”) published an Information Letter confirming that investment options under a defined contribution plan (e.g., a 401(k) or 403(b) plan) may include a limited allocation to private equity. Notably, the Letter does not discuss direct investment in private equity funds (for example, by adding a PE … Continue Reading
On May 21, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) finalized its proposed regulation expanding electronic delivery for retirement plan disclosures. On balance, the final regulation is generally consistent with the proposed regulation, although there are a number of key differences, including the addition of a new “direct email” delivery option not included in … Continue Reading
The SECURE Act, included as part of the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, was signed into law on December 20, 2019. This post highlights changes that are exclusive to 401(k) plans. For a chronological guide to key retirement plan issues raised by the new law, please click here. Increase to Maximum Default Deferral Rate for … Continue Reading
As previewed in our prior blog post, the recently enacted SECURE Act includes many changes that affect employer-sponsored benefit plans and require the attention of plan administrators. Among these changes, effective for distributions made after December 31, 2019 (for individuals who reach age 70½ after that date), is the delay of the “required beginning date” … Continue Reading
The SECURE Act, included as part of the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, was signed into law on December 20, 2019. This new law contains many significant changes that may impact employer-sponsored benefit plans. Given the scope of the law and the number of changes, we will release a series of blog posts exploring the … Continue Reading
The IRS recently released final regulations making a number of changes to the rules applicable to hardship distributions from 401(k) and 403(b) plans. Concluding our three-part series on the final regulations, this blog entry will focus on the following changes to the hardship distribution rules: (1) modifications to the list of safe harbor expenses that … Continue Reading
As discussed in our prior blog entry, the IRS recently released final regulations making a number of significant changes to the rules applicable to hardship distributions from 401(k) and 403(b) plans. As part of our continuing series on these final regulations, this blog entry will focus on two specific issues: (1) the elimination of the … Continue Reading
Last week, the Department of Treasury and the IRS issued final regulations regarding hardship distributions from 401(k) and 403(b) plans. The final regulations respond to comments based on earlier proposed regulations and make a number of significant changes to the existing IRS rules that apply to hardship distributions. Given the detailed material in the regulatory … Continue Reading
Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancements (SECURE) Act of 2019. To become law, the bill still needs to be passed by the Senate and signed by the President. Because there appears to be bipartisan support, there is a chance that some form of the SECURE … Continue Reading
In this episode of the Proskauer Benefits Brief, Paul Hamburger co-chair of Proskauer’s Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group, and associate Steven Einhorn discuss the recently proposed IRS regulations addressing the hardship withdrawal rules affecting 401(k) and 403(b) plans. We will discuss challenging questions employers and administrators face as they work through the new requirements, which … Continue Reading
Last Friday, the IRS issued eagerly-awaited proposed regulations regarding hardship distributions under section 401(k) and 403(b) plans (the “Proposed Regulations”). The Proposed Regulations primarily address hardship distribution issues raised by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (the “Budget Act”). (For our earlier blog entry summarizing these issues, click here.) At the same time, the Proposed … Continue Reading
In this episode of the Proskauer Benefits Brief, partner Myron D. Rumeld and associate Joseph Clark discuss participant-directed defined contribution (DC) plans and the lawsuits against the fiduciaries and service providers which are responsible for administering them. We will examine the best practices that can achieve favorable results for plan participants and the practices that can avert litigation or enable … Continue Reading
On Feb. 9, 2018, Congress passed, and the president signed, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (the “Budget Act”). As we previously discussed here, the Budget Act contains a number of provisions that affect qualified retirement plans. These changes include expanding the type of funds that can be distributed under Code Section 401(k) in the … Continue Reading
On Friday, February 9, 2018, Congress passed, and the President signed, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (the “Budget Act”). The Budget Act contains a number of provisions that affect qualified retirement plans. Plan sponsors should consider the impact of the Budget Act on their retirement programs. Hardship Withdrawals. The Budget Act relaxes the rules … Continue Reading
On January 29, 2016, the IRS issued Notice 2016-16 that provides guidance on mid-year changes to a safe harbor plan under sections 401(k) and 401(m) of the Internal Revenue Code. The guidance provides that a mid-year change either to a safe harbor plan or to a plan’s safe harbor notice does not violate the safe … Continue Reading
As reported here, the Internal Revenue Code currently permits a plan design that allows plan participants to convert non-Roth after-tax contributions to Roth contributions through in-plan Roth rollovers. This design would allow a participant to maximize deferrals to a defined contribution plan while limiting future tax liability. However, among the White House’s Fiscal Year 2016 … Continue Reading
By Damian A. Myers and Lisa A. Berkowitz Herrnson on Posted in 401(k) Plans
Please refer to our February 26, 2015 blog post for potential legislative developments regarding the ability to convert after-tax contributions to Roth contributions. Plan sponsors seeking to provide employees with the ability to make after-tax contributions to a 401(k) plan may be interested in adding, along with the common Roth contribution feature, non-Roth after-tax contribution and … Continue Reading
The D.C. Circuit affirmed the decision of a district court that Plaintiff Patrick Russell, a 401(k) plan participant, had knowingly waived his right to assert an ERISA stock-drop claim based on, among other things, the alleged imprudence of maintaining an employer stock fund as an investment option. Russell argued that the district court erred by … Continue Reading
A federal district court in Georgia recently dismissed a suit brought by participants in the SunTrust Bank 401(k) savings plan alleging fiduciary breaches based on defendants’ decision to continue permitting investment in SunTrust stock while its value declined during the subprime mortgage crisis. The court had previously granted in part and denied in part SunTrust’s … Continue Reading
