"For companies owned 25% or more by an ESOP, the trustee of the ESOP Trust is likely a Beneficial Owner for CTA reporting purposes. Issuance of warrants to selling shareholders in the sale of shares to an ESOP is common, and such selling shareholders may also be considered Beneficial Owners if they were issued more than 25% of the fully diluted equity of the entity in the form of warrants or hold a combination of warrants and stock accounting for more than 25%."  MORE >>

"Great Lakes Management Co. is suing its retirement plan consultant and retirement plan adviser USI Consulting Group Inc., alleging the firm negligently counseled the retirement plan to change plan contributions to a safe harbor and true-up that caused it to contribute nearly $100,000 over two years.... Great Lakes Management claims USI Consulting Group owed a duty to advise the plan of the implications -- including the cost to the company -- of the amendments, particularly the true-up." [Great Lakes Management Co. v. USI Consulting Group, Inc., No. 24-1093 (D. Minn. complaint filed Mar. 28, 2024)]  MORE >>

"In April 2023, AT&T offloaded over $8 billion of its Plan pension liabilities through a pension risk transfer by purchasing group annuity contracts ... The suit alleges that the transfer allowed AT&T to profit by more than $363 million and that State Street, an independent fiduciary of the plan, was paid to assess, recommend, and bless the transaction, and profited from the transfer.... There are now three recent suits in different district courts regarding a breach of fiduciary duty for pension risk transfers[.]" [Piercy v. AT&T Inc., No. 24-10608 (D. Mass. complaint filed Mar. 11, 2024)]  MORE >>

"DOL's presentation of the tiebreaker rule ... raises a question ... Is it DOL's view that fund managers in liquid financial markets, in 'apply[ing] investment strategies that never require them to choose between alternatives that equally serve the plan's needs,' may only consider issues of risk and return and never consider 'collateral benefits?' " [Utah v. Su, No. 23-0016 (N.D. Tex. Sep. 21, 2023; on appeal to 5th Cir. No. 23-11097; brief for appellees filed Mar. 21, 2024)]  MORE >>

"The [DOL] has sued a New York tree service, alleging that plan fiduciaries breached their duties to participants of the Trees R Us Inc. Profit Sharing Plan by stealing $149,380 from plan accounts in 2019 and 2020." [Su v. Trees R Us, Inc., No. 24-2472 (E.D. N.Y. complaint filed Apr. 2, 2024)]  MORE >>

"In recent wage negotiations in Detroit, the United Auto Workers union couldn't persuade the big automakers to restore its members' defined benefit pensions.... But last fall's compensation agreement contained a consolation prize ... Union workers at General Motors and Stellantis ... in Detroit will have a direct internet link from their retirement plan platform to Hueler's online annuity platform, where they can use part of their savings to buy a guaranteed income stream."  MORE >>

"While each expert offered a distinct take on the survey data, they all agreed that savers are better off focusing on a holistic approach to income planning rather than pursuing a single magic number."  MORE >>

"401(k) investors were active in Q1, logging 14 above-normal days ... The distribution of those days reveals a slowing trend, however, with eight taking place in January, followed by four in February and just two in March. Net trading favored fixed income funds on 33 of 61 days."  MORE >>

"The aggregate funded ratio for U.S. corporate pension plans increased by an estimated 1.0 percentage points in March, ending the month at 110.1% ... This month's change in funded ratio resulted from a 1.7 percentage point increase in asset value partially offset by a 0.8 percentage point increase in liability value."  MORE >>

"Long-term pension solvency demands funding discipline and proper methods. Local governments in Missouri need to wean themselves off fines and fees to cover pension costs and instead pay for their pension promises out of general appropriations. Claims that a failure to rededicate fine and fee revenue to pensions will force those pension systems to insolvency are simply false:"  MORE >>

"DoorDash is testing out a program that would offer access to health insurance, retirement, and paid time off (PTO) for its Pennsylvania-based employees.... Through the portable benefits platform Stride, participants can allocate their portable benefits savings to eligible categories most relevant to them, as well as access helpful information about benefits offerings."  MORE >>

134 pages. "This handbook focuses on considerations for publicly traded companies and specifically those listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or Nasdaq. Many of the principles discussed have broader application ... [The authors] discuss the developments over the past year to executive and director compensation practices and related trends, particularly with respect to implementation of the SEC's clawback rule in connection with the Dodd-Frank Act and pay-versus-performance disclosure requirements."  MORE >>