ESOP Attorney

[Guest johnmarg]

I have an ESOP and they are 2 years behind in giving me some benefits. I am afraid I will not get my lump sum when I turn age 62. Are their attorneys who specialize in this type of law and how would I find one. Thanks.

[GBurns]

Since lawyers tend to limit their practice to a geographical area, it should be helpful if you told what state and city you and the employer are in. Also what benefits are you seeking?

[stephen]

It would also be helpful to know how "you are 2 years behind" in getting some benefits. The distribution from an ESOP can be VERY different from a distribution in a 401(k) plan.

[RLL]

It is inappropriate for this Message Board to be used for direct referrals to individual professionals.

The ESOP Association (www.esopassociation.org), the National Center for Employee Ownership (www.nceo.org) and the Beyster Institute (www.beysterinstitute.org) can provide referrals to experienced ESOP lawyers.

[Ron Snyder]

If I needed an attorney and didn't have a local referral source, I would go to Martindale and search for an A V rated attorney or firm that worked with ERISA and ESOPs.

[namealreadyinuse]

A plaintiff's attorney is going to be hard to find for this claim unless the employer is a big outfit (doesn't sound like it). You should call the local DOL immediately. They respond to participant complaints.

[GBurns]

Who determines what is inappropriate? I thought that was determined by the ethics/morals/integrity etc of each poster and monitored by the Moderator.

Advice could very easily be given without having to name any individual professional or by giving a direct referral.

I think that it was just within the last 2 weeks that I saw multiple cases of posters giving themselves a plug by directly soliciting another poster. How come you made no comments then?

[Guest johnmarg]

[Hello again. Thanks for all the replies. I am not asking for a specific attorney name. I live in Calfornia, in the Bay area. I only need to know what type of attorney handles this type of problem. It is not a large company. They are headquarted in S. Cal. but our office is in N. Calif. Any help is appreciated.

quote name=GBurns' date='Aug 22 2006, 12:30 PM' post='136963]

Who determines what is inappropriate? I thought that was determined by the ethics/morals/integrity etc of each poster and monitored by the Moderator.

Advice could very easily be given without having to name any individual professional or by giving a direct referral.

I think that it was just within the last 2 weeks that I saw multiple cases of posters giving themselves a plug by directly soliciting another poster. How come you made no comments then?

[Ron Snyder]

Some of the best ESOP attorneys in the country are in SF. That is the type of attorney you should speak with.

[A Shot in the Dark]

Johnmarg:

Vebaguru is correct in that an attorney who practices ERISA Law and knows and understands ESOP's would be the best attorney to contact. There are several in San Fran.

However, before you hire an attorney, I would really encourage you to read you Summary Plan Description. If you do not have one, request one from your previous employer. Regardless of the SPD, I would really encourage you to understand the distribution process that is in place with your previous employer's ESOP.

Unless your employer has implemented a more liberal distribution policy, ESOP's can take up to 10/11 years to pay out vested account balances (longer for very large account balances) for those participants who have separated service for reason's other than death disability or retirement. Since you are not dead (presumption on my part because I don't speak to dead people) unless you are of retirement age or are disabled, an ESOP can take up to 5/6 years to begin distributions.

The general languge that is found in most ESOP's regarding distributions is as follows:

"In the event of a Participant’s Normal Retirement (or Early Retirement, if applicable), Disability or death while employed by Employer, distribution of his Capital Accumulation shall commence no later than the Allocation Date of the Plan Year following the Plan Year in which such Normal Retirement (or Early Retirement, if applicable), Disability or death occurs. If he terminates Service for any other reason, distribution of his Capital Accumulation shall commence no later than the Allocation Date of the sixth (6th) Plan Year following the Plan Year in which his Service terminates; for this purpose, if a Participant’s Capital Accumulation includes Financed Shares, such shares shall not be deemed to be a part of his Capital Accumulation in his Stock Account until the Allocation Date of the Plan Year in which the Acquisition Loan which financed such shares has been fully repaid."

[Kirk Maldonado]

GBurns:

I am offended as you are by a person blatantly soliciting some work in the boards. However, I've not seen any lately. (I don't read all of the topics.)

If you see a posting that you feel is inappropriate, notify me and I will look into it. (As a super moderator, I can delete offending messages on any Message Board.)

ESOP Attorneys in SF

I think that there are one or more top-notch ESOP attorneys in almost every major city. However, the best ESOP attorney that I've ever seen was in SF before he retired.