Multiemployer Plan: No Withdrawal Liability for Certain Temporary Con

[Guest CMC]

Anybody have any experience with this apparent exception to withdrawal liability?

It looks like if you've only been in a multiemployer plan for a short time before withdrawing, you may escape withdrawal liability if certain requirements are met.

Here are the facts: Our client merged its own DB plan with a multiemployer plan in 2000. Now it plans to sell the facility to buyer in an asset deal. The multiemployer plan clearly comports with 2 of the 4 requirements of ERISA 4210(B) (e.g., not a construction industry plan; plan says ERISA 4210(a) applies).

My questions are:

(1) Does ERISA 4210(B)(3) require that the multiemployer plan be amended to expressly refer to my client's employees? (Related to this, is the reduction referred to in that section, the reduction of Code 411(a)(3)(E) or (F)? What I'm looking at says (E) but (F) seems to be the section that refers to a reduction.)

(2) If that's required and the plan agrees (or if it is not required), and the ratio of assets to benefit payments for 2000 was at least 8 to 1, will my client (seller) escape withdrawal liability?

(3) What's the usual procedure for sorting through all this? Contact the plan and ask if they agree we ought to get the benefit of this exception?

If we can't make this work, I guess we'll try and get buyer to agree to comply with ERISA 4204, but it seems we ought to explore this first.

Thanks for your thoughts.