"Most federal courts that have faced the issue have agreed that investments offered through self-directed brokerage windows are typically not investment options subject to ERISA's fiduciary duties.... If the Crypto Guidance indicates a change in the DOL's stance on this issue, there could be much more far-reaching implications beyond cryptocurrency investments."  MORE >>

"[S]everal states have enacted or implemented state-administered retirement savings programs to increase retirement plan access and savings among private-sector workers.... State-administered retirement programs are intended to provide savings options for workers without a workplace plan. States are taking a variety of approaches to these programs[.]" [IF11611, updated Mar. 18, 2022]  MORE >>

"Plan sponsors and advisers can institute electronic transfers to minimize paperwork and simplify the investment process ... Plans should encourage participants to utilize a loan feature before taking a hardship withdrawal from their account ... Employees need to be educated on the financial impact to their retirement plan when taking a loan or hardship withdrawal by working with a financial advisory firm."  MORE >>

"In assessing the prudence of a plan's potential or actual investment option, do plan sponsors ... have a duty to address whether a mutual fund qualifies as a 'closet index' fund? Should they have such a duty in order to protect plan participants and other beneficiaries given the obvious harm of 'closet indexing?' "  MORE >>

"Though rising interest rates lead to increased correlations between stocks and bonds, ... anticipating the magnitude of a rate rise and the length of time for the climb is difficult.... [M]any professional investors manage strategies as duration neutral to benchmarks given the difficulty in calling interest-rate changes.... Nimble investors may mitigate pain from rising rates with some thoughtful planning."  MORE >>

"Sellers often defend themselves in ESOP valuation cases by claiming that they are not valuation experts, and thus they cannot be expected to know whether the ESOP paid more than fair market value for the company's stock. After all, that's why the trustee hires its own independent appraiser. Yet, the Vinoskey and Bowers decisions show that sellers still need to be engaged in the process."  MORE >>

"The de-risking progression ... has reached a point of diminishing value, [a recent] study contended. It 'robs plans of the returns they need to remain fully funded and stable across time,' the report read. In short, returns suffer.... The report advocates peppering in the likes of real estate, emerging market debt, private credit, and hedge funds into portfolios."  MORE >>

"[1] Financial Wellness is a differentiator and business builder. [2] There is opportunity to expand the reach of wellness beyond just basic and financial topics. [3] Financial wellness solutions may work best using a range of tactics and resources."  MORE >>

"[S]tudies have shown that women substantially outperform men when it comes to their saving investments. A study by U.K's. Warwick University showed women trade less frequently than men, women are less interested in speculative investments, and women tend to take a more long-term perspective with their investments."  MORE >>

"[A] Texas federal court has concluded that the DOL's actions, both in delaying the effective date of the IC Final Rule ... and in withdrawing it ... violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).... ' [T]he IC Final Rule's stated purpose was to provide clarity to the analysis. Instead, the court noted, the DOL rescinded the IC Final Rule and flatly shut down any potential consideration of alternatives to its withdrawal, leaving employers and employees with the same confusion that had existed prior to the IC Final Rule." [Coalition for Workforce Innovation v. Walsh, No. 21-0130 (E.D. Tex. Mar. 14, 2022)]  MORE >>

"The executive asserted that the disputed amendment applied: For a short period of time (only 15 months) and to a small group of employees. Only contingently (that is, if there was a change in control and if an employee was terminated without cause or terminated her employment for good reason). The district court rejected the employer's argument that its amendment required the kind of discretionary decisionmaking that characterizes ERISA plans." [Grey v. Forescout Technologies, Inc., No. 21-4555 (N.D. Cal., Mar. 16, 2022)]  MORE >>