Alex counsels clients on all issues related to offering benefits to employees throughout the entire life cycle of a plan, from commencement to termination. Alex has significant experience drafting retirement plan documents for ...
Form 5500 is the information return that must be filed by most employee benefit plans subject to ERISA (unless an exception applies). Failure to file this annual return for a plan can result in assessment of penalties by the IRS and DOL. Because the penalties can be severe, it is important to know what steps can be taken to reduce them if you realize that ...
Most employers realize that their retirement and welfare (e.g. health) plans are subject to ERISA and must comply with a variety of Department of Labor requirements. But unknown to many employers is that severance benefits can also be an ERISA covered plan, usually as a welfare plan, but sometimes as a pension plan. Because the determination of ...
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has changed the tax treatment of fringe transportation benefits. The new law makes it more expensive for employers to provide the same benefits to employees as a year ago. Employers will have to choose to eat the cost, cut the benefit entirely, or find another way.
Moving forward, employers will no longer be able to take ...
What standard of review do courts use for the administrator’s interpretation of plan language and administrator’s factual determinations? The answer will depend on whether the plan document delegates discretion to the plan administrator. A court reviewing the denial of a claim of an ERISA plan that lawfully delegates discretionary ...
Buried within last month’s Budget Bill were three changes that will be important to both plan participants and employers starting in 2019. Generally, the changes will make it easier for plan participants to acquire funds through a hardship withdrawal. The Bill does not mandate employers to make any changes, but employers might want to amend ...