"Catch-up contributions will be made with after-tax dollars, which will not lower [employee] taxable income in the year they are made. However, the money will grow tax-free, and qualified withdrawals in retirement will also be tax-free.... Employers must now offer a Roth contribution option in their plans. If a plan does not have a Roth option, HPIs will be unable to make catch-up contributions."  MORE >>

"[A] plan may have different correction deadlines depending on each participant's particular situation, but the same correction method is required for similarly-situated individuals. Correction is not required under two circumstances: The amount of the pre-tax salary deferrals that should have been designated Roth catch-up contributions does not exceed $250. The employee's FICA wages are determined to exceed the applicable threshold on account of adjustments made after the applicable correction deadline."  MORE >>

"Determination of 'Roth catch-up wage threshold' ... Application of the Universal Availability Rule ... 'Deemed' Roth catch-up election ... Determination of catch-up contributions as Roth ... Determination of employer ... Multiemployer plans and Multiple Employer Plans (MEPs) ... Plans subject to Puerto Rico tax code ... Correction methods for 'Section 414(v)(7) failures' ... Section 414(v)(7) failure correction deadlines."  MORE >>

"The court sided with the pension fund and granted its motion to strike the jury demand. The court reasoned that because the pension fund's veil-piercing and evade-or-avoid theories are methods for enforcing withdrawal liability, and because there is no right to a jury trial in a withdrawal liability action, the trial should proceed as a bench trial." [Board of Trustees of the PAMCAH-UA Local 675 Pension Fund v. SMAC Hawaii, Inc., No. 23-0076 (D. Haw. Sept. 30, 2025)  MORE >>

"September's returns of 2.50% helped to offset a 17-basis-point drop in discount rates and lift the PFI funded ratio from 106.3% as of August 31 to 106.5% as of September 30 -- the highest level since late 2007. These gains added $26 billion to the market value of plan assets and swelled the funded status surplus to $80 billion. "  MORE >>

"Once these alternative investments are available, retirement investors will have the potential for higher returns — but they will also face also new complexities including higher fees, longer lockup periods and less transparency than with stocks and bonds. Understanding the trade-offs and the differences between private credit and private equity is critical for anyone considering them."  MORE >>

"A California federal judge has ordered [the plaintiffs' attorneys] to pay a $50,000 penalty for giving the [DOL] confidential documents United Behavioral Health turned over in a class action accusing the insurer of overcharging workers for out-of-network substance use disorder treatments.... The DOL is investigating UBH over similar allegations, according to the judge's ruling." [L.D. v. United Behavioral Health, No. 20-2254 (N.D. Calif. Oct. 7, 2025)]  MORE >>

"The [IRS] has furloughed nearly half its workforce and shut down most day-to-day operations as the government shutdown drags into its second week -- a move that threatens to ... stall compliance actions, and complicate the rollout of sweeping new tax changes approved by Congress earlier this year.... While about 53% of staff remain on the job ... the IRS warned that 'most operations are closed due to the lapse in appropriations.' "  MORE >>

"Functions related to legal counsel that do not pertain to ongoing litigation or exempt matters will stop, as will planning, training and development initiatives across the agency. Maintenance of information systems that are not associated with data protection or active filing season work will be suspended, along with administrative functions that are not connected to safety, remittance protection or exempt funding."  MORE >>

"[1] Cybersecurity is a fiduciary issue.... [2] Vet and tighten your vendor contracts now.... [3] Look for documentation, not just policies ... [4] Train your people, and document that training.... [5] Check your insurance, and insist on cyber coverage.... [6] Bring cybersecurity into your plan oversight meetings.... Cybersecurity isn't just an IT problem, it's an ERISA oversight issue. "  MORE >>