D&T's KEYSOP

[Guest PLHart]

We have a customer who has been approached by Deloitte & Touche regarding a KEYSOP which I have seen several threads on in this message board, the last significant one from 2000, however. I have two questions:

1. Since 2000 has there been any further clarification from any authority on the use of a leveraged or partially leveraged KEYSOP for a for-profit company, and

2. If company adopts this plan what does D&T provide? Do they provide plan design, plan docs, opinion letter AND administration and recordkeeping, or does company have to go find another company to handle admin and recordkeeping aspect? If they must find separate admin and recordkeeping, where do they find it?

Any help appreciated. Thanks.

[GBurns]

What is a KEYSOP?

Right after I posted the question I realized that I could probably find the answer in a previous thread... and I did..

http://benefitslink.com/boards/index.php?showtopic=1577

A Google search also provided a lot of info.

After reading I thought "Here we go again".

As far as I know there is nothing new EXCEPT intensive IRS action against illegal and abusive tax shelters and coming action against promoters and users. This includes COLI, BOLI, Reverse Split Dollar, Split Dollar etc etc and many items promoted by the Big 5 and investment bankers. You might also want to search "tax shelters" "illegal tax shelters" "abusive tax shelters" etc.

Then decide what category you think this falls into.

I suggest that you seek specific tax code and Treas Regs references rather than interpretations by a promoter. I would also wonder why there is not even 1 PLR on any aspect of the plan after all this time. I would also question whomever wrote the opinion letter (if there is even one) that is used as support to make sure that they are still standing behind whatever they wrote.

But most of all I would advise anyone to get their own opinion Letter from their own selected lawyer and then consider their own PLR.

[IRC401]

There is a discussion about discounted options in BNA Tax Management Portfolio 385-4th.

I don't remember if the portfolio discusses floating exercise prices or if it was printed before the IRS issued the 457 proposed regs.