"This article ... examines the conflict of interest issues that arise under the prohibited transaction rule known as the self-dealing rule in the following two circumstances: [1] When an advisor combines a client's retirement accounts and personal accounts to provide the client with a reduced fee -- a practice sometimes referred to as 'householding;' and [2] When a fiduciary advisor recommends funds man- aged by the advisor or its affiliate."  MORE >>

"[W]hile it is clear that the benefits many receive will increase, the amount by which that will happen is not. The SSA cautions that the amount of change in monthly benefits 'can vary greatly.' This, it says, is because there are multiple factors in play;"  MORE >>

"Appellants' reliance on quarterly statements ... was insufficient to establish a breach, particularly as Martinez never inquired about the policy despite receiving clear information elsewhere.... [T]he court found no reasonable reliance on these statements in light of the clear language in formal plan documents. The court emphasized that plan participants have a duty to inform themselves of plan terms and that fiduciaries are not obligated to address participant misunderstandings absent an inquiry." [LeBoeuf v. Entergy Corp., No. 24-30583 (5th Cir. May 1, 2025),]  MORE >>

"A core issue in the case was whether Knight-Swift was bound by statements in its annual Form 5500 filings to the [DOL] that forfeited assets 'shall be used' to pay plan expenses. The plaintiffs argued that those filings committed the company to covering administrative costs with forfeitures ... [The judge] sided with the company, finding that under ERISA, a written plan document, not external filings like a Form 5500, governs fiduciary obligations." [Sievert v. Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc., No. 24-2443 (D. Ariz. Apr. 29, 2025)]  MORE >>

"The decision sets a low bar for what plaintiffs must plead in these cases to avoid dismissal and proceed to the costly discovery phase of litigation. The court recognizes that while its decision could lead to more prohibited transaction lawsuits and settlements, lower courts have tools available to discourage meritless claims. The ultimate effect on sponsors and fiduciaries will likely depend on whether lower courts are willing to employ these strategies." [Cunningham v. Cornell Univ., No. 23-1007 (S.Ct. Apr. 17, 2025)]  MORE >>

"[H]istorically about 60% of plans use forfeitures to reduce company contributions, and about half use them to reduce expenses while 10 percent reallocate them to participants.... Six percent of respondents ... have made a policy change and three percent are considering one. More than three quarters (77.5%) are comfortable with the current policy while 14% are monitoring the lawsuits and will make a change if needed."  MORE >>

"Most courts would, if pressed, agree that the question about whether a particular fiduciary decision was prudent depends on the facts and circumstances at the time it was made and not in retrospect, that is, not in view of the subsequent (alleged) underperformance of that fund. But some courts seem to (implicitly) ignore this distinction.... Perhaps the best illustration of this sort of case involves targeting a plan's target date fund."  MORE >>

"Most 401(k)s have a separate account that contains only after-tax contributions (not taxable) and earnings (taxable). If your plan does separate accounting, then only that account is considered in doing the pro-rata calculation. (Neither pre-tax accounts nor Roth accounts within your 401(k) are considered for this calculation.) The portion of each withdrawal taxable to you is the ratio of earnings in the after-tax account to the value of the entire separate account. I"  MORE >>

"This analysis explores how public-sector employers share and allocate defined benefit pension costs between employers —taxpayers— and employees, compares these practices with those in the private sector, and advises policymakers on creating cost-sharing policies to balance the burden of retirement benefits between the employer and employee."  MORE >>

75 pages. "The Committee believes that for most pension-related actuarial applications, the Pub-2016 mortality rates (including those for Disabled Retirees) should be projected with an appropriate mortality improvement scale, and that generational projection should be considered as an approach to projecting future mortality rates. In all cases, the selection of a mortality improvement assumption must satisfy the applicable requirements of ASOP 27."  MORE >>

28 pages. "[W]orkers have expectations about how long they'll live and when they'll retire, which means they have (implicit) expectations about how long they'll live in retirement.... [T]hese expectations will likely influence retirement-related decisions and behavior. This report examines these expectations, how they're determined, how they interact, and how they relate to decision-making."  MORE >>

"Convergence is potentially pitting advisors who sold and manage a plan against their record keeper partners. The question is not just who stands to profit the most or is best positioned; the question is what is in the best interest of the participants because of ERISA fiduciary mandates."  MORE >>

"Under Section 406 of ERISA, every payment that an ERISA-covered plan provides to a service provider is automatically a prohibited transaction. In order to pay service providers, such as recordkeepers, a plan would normally rely on Section 408 of ERISA ... Under Cornell, plaintiffs can bring a claim based solely on the fact that the plan is paying its service providers, despite the exemption for retirement plan recordkeeping, investment advisor and other standard plan-related service providers." [Cunningham v. Cornell Univ., No. 23-1007 (S.Ct. Apr. 17, 2025)]  MORE >>

"We can expect that ERISA fiduciary breach lawsuits will nearly always feature a prohibited transaction claim going forward. Hopefully, district courts will take seriously the mitigating steps suggested by the Supreme Court. Having said that, the decision does not change the steps that retirement plan fiduciaries should be taking now to build a proper defense." [Cunningham v. Cornell Univ., No. 23-1007 (S.Ct. Apr. 17, 2025)]  MORE >>

"The more vendors you work with, the greater the chance you'll be impacted by a cybersecurity incident affecting one of them.... [E]very vendor you work with likely works with other vendors, increasing the probability that you'll be affected by an incident.... If a vendor cannot provide an objective, third-party cybersecurity assessment, like a SOC2 report or other attestation, showing that it has solid cyber protections in place, that's a red flag."  MORE >>