Plan Takeover, Document questions

We were recently hired to takeover as TPA for a plan. It is a mess. The previous TPA was sold in 2021 and the Plan was left to fend for itself. In the time since, the Plan Sponsor has retired most of the previous owners. The remaining owners and associates are all pretty new to the Plan. Outside of knowing where they funds are currently being held, they have little information on their Plan. 

Through some digging they were able to locate a plan document. It is a PPA document. None of the Trustees listed on this PPA document are with the company currently.  Our office is working to get them a new document, but I am unsure about the exact process we need to take to keep everything in good standing as we correct everything that has happened over the last 2 years. 

Can we take their PPA document and restate it on our provider's Post PPA Document? What should we use as the effective date? Who should be listed as Trustees? They also changed the Plan Sponsor and Plan name in 2023. Does this change need to be made as an amendment after we have restated the Plan?

Any assistance/guidance is greatly appreciated.

The IRS weighed in on plans that were not timely amended for Cycle 3 (assuming we are talking about a DC plan).  At a high level, have them adopt your document with a current effective date.  The Plan Sponsor can name the Trustees.  The restatement will concurrently change the Plan Sponsor and Plan name.  Highlight this in the resolution to adopt the restatement.

Keep in mind that you don't know what you don't know.  With all of the recent legislation particularly around the pandemic, a plan could make decisions on various provisions which they could apply in practice but would not need to be included in the document until later.  It sounds like those who would have known about any such decisions are no longer around.  This may require looking at available participant records including statements to see if there was activity that would have been driven by some of these provisions (particularly payments and loans).  

You should take an inventory of items that should have been done but were not.  This would include compliance testing, 5500s, disclosures, timing of funding...  If this inventory is long or contains operational failures, the you need to consider which may rise to the level of a VCP, VFCP, or DFVCP.  They likely will, so the plan restatement should be done in the context of an overall cure for plan deficiencies.

It can be challenging to know the full scope of this type of work.  You should get a signed engagement letter setting out how you will get paid.

Hire ERISA counsel to guide the process and keep them on track for the future.

I second EBP.  These folks need to hire an experienced ERISA lawyer to clean up the mess.  They'll have to put out some money, but it should be worth it.  Reminds me of the oil change commercial: "Pay me now or pay me later."  Apparently the employer went cheap and now must suffer the consequences.