Subscribe (Free) to
Daily or Weekly Newsletters
Post a Job

Featured Jobs

Retirement Plan Administrator

Bates & Company, Inc.
(Remote / Winter Park FL)

Bates & Company, Inc. logo

Director of 3(16) Operations

Compass
(Remote / NH / Hybrid)

Compass logo

Defined Benefit Combo Cash Balance Compliance Consultant

Loren D. Stark Company (LDSCO)
(Remote)

Loren D.  Stark Company (LDSCO) logo

Regional Vice President of Sales

The Retirement Plan Company
(Remote / AL / FL / GA / MS)

The Retirement Plan Company logo

Business Development Director

AimPoint Pension
(Remote / Pompano Beach FL / AL / GA)

AimPoint Pension logo

Loan & Distribution Specialist

AimPoint Pension
(Remote)

AimPoint Pension logo

View More Employee Benefits Jobs

Free Newsletters

“BenefitsLink continues to be the most valuable resource we have at the firm.”

-- An attorney subscriber

Mobile app icon
LinkedIn icon     Twitter icon     Facebook icon

117 Matching News Items

1.  MassMutual Settles Excessive Fee Lawsuit
The Lowenbaum Partnership and FRA PlanTools Link to more items from this source
Nov. 3, 2014
"The settlement agreement ... allows for two settlement classes to be approved: [1] the Monetary Relief Class and [2] the Structural Changes Class. The Monetary Relief Class covers current and past retirements plan customers of MassMutual, while the Structural Changes Class covers current and future retirement plan customers of MassMutual.... [T]he lawsuit brought by MassMutual's own employees is not affected by this lawsuit[.]" [Goldenstar, Inc. v. MassMutual Life Ins. Co., No. 11-cv-30235-MGM (D. Mass., settlement agreements part 1 and part 2 filed Oct. 31, 2014)]
2.  MassMutual Is Found to Be a Fiduciary in ERISA Suit by Proposed Class of Customer Plans
The Lowenbaum Partnership and FRA PlanTools Link to more items from this source
May 27, 2014
"After conducting an extensive analysis of both old and recent case law on the functional fiduciary tests under ERISA 3(21)(i) and (iii) ... [the court] found that MassMutual was a functional fiduciary because it controlled its own compensation ... [but] found that MassMutual was not a fiduciary with respect to the change of or potential changing of investments in the [Separate Investment Accounts] ... [T]hese decisions seem to be based on a combination of which circuit the lawsuit is brought in and the specific practices of each insurance company in how they are setting up and operating their separate account investments as part of the group annuity contracts offered." [Golden Star v. MassMutual Life Insurance Co., No. 3:11-30235-PBS (D. Mass. May 20, 2014)]
3.  MassMutual Faces Four ERISA Breach Counts in Retirement Lawsuit
PLANSPONSOR; free registration may be required Link to more items from this source
Nov. 15, 2022
"The plaintiff alleges plan fiduciaries breached their duties under ERISA by using the MassMutual Group Annuity Contract to offer investment options to participants. The plaintiff's excessive fee claims are centered on the Group Annuity Contract, an annuity that guarantees a fixed rate of return for participants." [Lalonde v. Massachusetts Mutual Life Ins. Co., No. 22-30147 (D. Mass. complaint filed Nov. 9, 2022)]
4.  MassMutual Workplace Financial Wellness Study (PDF)
MassMutual Link to more items from this source
Dec. 3, 2019
16 data-rich presentation slides. "Eight in ten plan sponsors believe their employees are struggling financially, and often in ways that are not addressed by their current benefits offering.... Plan sponsors are aware of such challenges because they hear their employees talking about them, they see lower retirement plan participation than they would like to see, their employees are taking on second jobs, or taking loans from their retirement plans. Nearly six in ten plan sponsors believe their employees are looking to them, their employer, for support."
5.  MassMutual Provides a Vision for Open MEPs (If They Become Reality)
Retirement Income Journal Link to more items from this source
Oct. 31, 2019
"[MassMutual] has been managing multiple-employer plans for enterprises linked by associations, franchises, or Professional Employer Organizations since 1989, with more than 4,000 adopting employers and $4 billion in assets under management. Assuming that the legislation eventually passes, [MassMutual] urges employers and plan advisors to consider these issues when evaluating an Open MEP: [1] Selecting the plan design.... [2] Deciding on hands-on vs. hands-off plan administration.... [3] Choosing limited vs. customized investment menu.... [4] Determining fiduciary oversight."
6.  MassMutual Settles 401(k) Fee Lawsuit for $31M
Bloomberg BNA Link to more items from this source
June 17, 2016
"The lawsuit ... alleged that MassMutual and its top executives 'larded' the company's retirement plan with 'excessive fees' and 'unreasonably priced, proprietary investment options' in violation of their fiduciary duties under [ERISA].... In addition to a $30.9 million settlement payment, MassMutual also agreed to keep the plan's annual record-keeping fees no higher than $35 per participant for the next four years. The agreement includes a four-year ban on calculating record-keeping fees as a percentage of plan assets."
7.  MassMutual Sued Over Stable Value Fund Fees
PLANSPONSOR; free registration may be required Link to more items from this source
Feb. 11, 2016
"A 401(k) plan participant has filed suit against Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, alleging the firm collects tens of millions of dollars annually in undisclosed compensation due to the way it values the crediting rate for stable value funds offered to 401(a) and 403(b) retirement plans.... The lawsuit says MassMutual has the sole and exclusive discretion to determine the crediting rate for a given crediting period. MassMutual sets the crediting rate well below its internal rate of return (IRR) on the invested capital it holds in the SVAs, creating a substantial profit for itself, according to the complaint."
8.  2015 MassMutual Generations@work Study Research Results (PDF)
MassMutual Link to more items from this source
Dec. 3, 2015
13 pages. "The most desirable employer-provided benefit is vacation days, ahead of key financial benefits like better 401(k) matches or no healthcare premiums.... Men are more likely to say they think it's easy to manage their finances and claim to be less distracted by their finances than women are. Men also have a stronger preference for financial benefits than women do, while women have a stronger preference for lifestyle benefits ... What benefits Americans say are most important to them varies widely by gender, generation and ethnicity."
9.  MassMutual Is Functional Fiduciary But Ability to Remove Funds Doesn't Confer Status
Bloomberg BNA Link to more items from this source
May 29, 2014
"The court's ruling ... directly touched on the issue left open by [the opinion of the Seventh Circuit in Leimkuehler v. American United Life Ins. Co.] and taken up by the DOL amicus brief -- namely, whether the power to substitute funds in an investment lineup causes a record keeper to be an ERISA Section 3(21)(A)(iii) fiduciary for purposes of a challenge to its receipt of revenue-sharing payments. Appearing to disagree with the DOL, the [federal district court in Massachusetts] answered that question in the negative. However, the court emphasized that its conclusion was based partly on the fact that MassMutual never exercised this discretion." [Golden Star v. MassMutual Life Insurance, No. 3:11-30235-PBS (D. Mass. May 20, 2014)]
10.  MassMutual Finds Younger Participants the Majority
PLANSPONSOR; free registration may be required Link to more items from this source
Nov. 19, 2012
"Generation X and Generation Y account for 55% of the participants in defined contribution (DC) plans administered by MassMutual. Only 41% of participants were Baby Boomers, according to third-quarter data; however, Boomers still control the most assets (61%). Gen X and Gen Y hold 31% of DC plan assets on MassMutual's platform."
11.  MassMutual Releases White Paper for Retirement Plan Advisers
planadviser Link to more items from this source
Feb. 2, 2009
Excerpt: MassMutual's Retirement Services Division has published a new white paper exploring factors that help make retirement advisers successful and the correlation between adviser success and plan sponsor satisfaction. MassMutual said in a release that 'The Successful Retirement Advisor Part II: Best Practices and Key Drivers of Success' helps advisers understand the characteristics, attributes, and best practices that contribute to a plan sponsor's satisfaction and to an adviser's success in retaining satisfied clients and earning new retirement plan business.
12.  MetLife, MassMutual Win $1.6 Billion Pension-Risk Deal with PPG
Bloomberg Link to more items from this source
June 27, 2016
"MetLife Inc. and Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. agreed to take on $1.6 billion in pension liabilities from PPG Industries Inc., the maker of paints and coatings.... The deal accounts for about 13,400 of PPG's salaried and non-union hourly retirees or their survivors who began receiving benefit payments before April 2 ... The insurers will assume the obligation to make all future annuity payments and administer the arrangements. Other participants will remain in PPG's pension plan."
13.  MassMutual Settlement Provides Guidance on Fiduciary Governance
The Lowenbaum Partnership and FRA PlanTools Link to more items from this source
Nov. 10, 2014
"[B]efore signing a service agreement with any covered service provider (CSP), the following questions should be considered by the responsible plan fiduciary(ies): ... [1] Does our CSP provide a notice of any additions and deletion from the menu of options? [2] Does any CSP have the discretion to remove an investment from the menu without the prior authorization of the responsible plan fiduciary? ... [3] Does the responsible plan fiduciary have the option of using investment alternatives that do not provide any indirect payments to the CSP? [4] Does the CSP have the discretion to unilaterally adjust their compensation?"
14.  MassMutual Settles Fiduciary Lawsuit Over Fee Transparency
Employee Fiduciary Link to more items from this source
Nov. 10, 2014
"The ruling and settlement appear to open the door to further legal action by plan sponsors in a similar arrangement with other providers. While not all providers with revenue sharing may be deemed fiduciaries, the risk of potential liability may cause many to evaluate their fee disclosure procedures and make pre-emptive changes. Look for other plan providers to open up and disclose revenue sharing arrangements in order to avoid potential liability."
15.  The Inadvertent Fiduciary: MassMutual Crosses the Line
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt, LLP Link to more items from this source
June 16, 2014
"It would appear to be more logical to find that the person must first be determined to be a fiduciary based on other actions it took with respect to the plan, and then examine whether a breach of fiduciary duty occurred in setting the level of fiduciary compensation. If setting its own compensation level is what makes a vendor a fiduciary, then almost any plan record-keeper could be held to be a fiduciary under the reasoning adopted by the Golden Star court because most form contracts ... permit plan vendors to change at least some rates for service, by simply providing advance notice." [Golden Star v. Mass Mutual [sic] Life Insurance, No. 3:11-30235-PBS (D. Mass. May 20, 2014)]
16.  SPX Offloads $800 Million in Pension Risk; MassMutual to Take Portion in Buyout
Pensions & Investments Link to more items from this source
Nov. 14, 2013
"SPX also plans to offer a lump-sum option to 7,500 vested former employees. The annuity buyout will cover about 16,000 retirees. The two actions combined are expected to shift about $800 million in pension obligations off SPX's balance sheet.... 'We anticipate it will be the third-largest buyout in recent history, after GM and Verizon,'[said Jason Richards, senior consultant in the retirement risk management group at Towers Watson]."
17.  Text of Federal District Court Opinion: Discretion to Set Fees Confers Fiduciary Status and Potential Liability for Breach (PDF)
U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts Link to more items from this source
May 21, 2014
"MassMutual had the discretion to unilaterally set fees up to a maximum and exercised that discretion. MassMutual asserts that its compensation may come from any combination of three sources: (a) fees charged to plan participants, (b) direct payments from the plan sponsor, or (c) revenue sharing payments from mutual funds.... A reasonable fact-finder could determine that MassMutual functions as an ERISA functional fiduciary under subsection (i) to the extent it determines its own compensation, takes fees out of the separate accounts, and has the discretion to offset some or all of the RSPs against management fees as its compensation." [Golden Star, Inc. v. MassMutual Life Insurance Co., No. 3:11-30235-PBS (D. Mass. May 20, 2014)]
18.  2024 Retirement Happiness Study (PDF)
MassMutual Link to more items from this source
Mar. 14, 2024
"The definition of retirement may be shifting to mean more than simply an end to working. A majority of pre-retirees view retirement as either shifting focus to 'a new type of work or fulfilling purpose' or 'working less.'... On average, 63 is the ideal age for retirement according to both retirees and pre-retirees. While current retirees are hitting close to that mark with an average actual retirement age of 62, there are signs that future retirees could have more difficulty retiring at their ideal age.... Many retirees retired earlier than planned. Few say they retired later than planned."
19.  The Financial Challenges in Age-Gap, May-December Marriages
MassMutual Link to more items from this source
June 13, 2023
"This article will: [1] Highlight the retirement implications of having a much older spouse, including claiming strategies for Social Security and Medicare eligibility. [2] Explain how life insurance can potentially be an effective way to mitigate longevity risk. [3] Discuss the required minimum distribution rules for IRAs when your spouse is more than 10 years younger than you."
20.  Understanding Annuities
MassMutual Link to more items from this source
May 21, 2023
"Annuities can be a useful tool in wealth management and financial planning ... On the surface they may sound like retirement plans, but while annuities share some things in common, they're not the same.... Buying an annuity: Basic types ... How an annuity pays out ... Should I buy an annuity?"
   Next »

Your Search Options

  • If you have selected the Any Word radio button, above:

    Enter a single word, or as many words as you'd like (perhaps some synonyms). An item will match if it contains any one of the words.

    If you enter several words, the search engine will determine which words are the most important. So you can enter a question. Or you can paste an excerpt of several paragraphs from an article on another website to find similar news items on BenefitsLink.

  • If you have selected the All Words radio button, above:

    Enter several words. An item will match only if it contain every one of the words.

  • If you have selected the Advanced radio button, above:

    Certain words and punctuation take on special meanings—

    • Quotation marks can be used to require an exact phrase, such as
      "standard of review"
    • The words AND, OR and NOT become logic operators, which are especially powerful when used with parentheses, such as
      (vested OR vesting OR lifetime) AND (retiree OR retirement) AND (health OR healthcare) AND (benefits OR coverage)
© 2024 BenefitsLink.com, Inc.