Pension Application

[Guest Ohio City]

Looking for a case that holds that a retirement application is a plan document for purposes of ERISA. If you know of scuh a case, please pass along name and/or citation.

Thanks

[My 2 cents]

Don't have any sources to back this up, but I would be really surprised if the IRS would accept, as justification for a tax deduction, a mere agreement to use a particular financial company's product to handle plan investments. I think the IRS would actually require the adoption of a detailed plan document, defining such things as eligiblity to become a participant, vesting rules, rollover rules, definition of the defined benefit or defined contribution etc. If the "retirement application" incorporates all of the mandatory plan provisions, then perhaps. If the retirement application merely describes contractual details (termination of the contract, liquidation of the funds, etc.), then I cannot imagine that that would suffice.

Perhaps I do not fully understand your question. The phrase "retirement application" puts me off, since it would mean, to me, an application by a participant in an existing plan for payment of their benefits under that plan.