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Retirement Calculators Threaten the Stability of Your Entire Plan

Calculators are not designed to compute investment performance history, but rather, to use such information along with contribution rate to give the participant an idea of whether or not they're on track to reaching their savings goal.

2012 Study of Indexing in DC Plans (PDF)

Given the substantial number of plans which fall into this category (88% of plans have less than $200 million in assets), the increasing popularity of index investing and new fiduciary regulations that require companies to ensure the reasonableness of investment expenses; the practical decision to replace index mutual funds with ETFs will likely serve as the 'breakout' point for ETFs in retirement plans.

Asset Allocation Models Are the Only Way Forward for 401(k)'s

[C]ost is the starting point of what has been deemed 'the equation for retirement success- cost, compounding and contribution- the 3 C's.' Cost should be low, so participants can keep as much money in their accounts as possible to grow for retirement.

A New Rebalancing Methodology to Reduce Risk and Increase Dollar Cost Averaging in Defined Contribution Plans (PDF)

Examining the hypothesis that increased rebalancing frequency through the use of cash flows will result in enhanced risk mitigation and dollar cost averaging.

Judge Denies Claims by Retirement Plan Participants for Plan Investments Tied to Madoff

"Hundreds of people whose employers invested their retirement funds with Bernard Madoff cannot recover money from the liquidation of Mr. Madoff's firm because they weren't direct customers of the imprisoned Ponzi scheme operator, a bankruptcy judge has ruled.... Investors in the plans, however, still have a shot at recovering money, because the plans themselves have brought claims against Mr. Madoff's firm. [Irving Picard, the court-appointed trustee winding down Mr. Madoff's investment firm,] has denied the claim of at least one of the four plans, court papers show." [Securities Investor Protection Corporation v. Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, No. 09-11 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Aug. 22, 2014)]

Empower Accused of Pushing Excessive Costs, Underperforming Investments

"According to the filing, Empower leveraged its role as recordkeeper for employer-sponsored retirement plans to harvest confidential participant data and then target individuals, particularly those nearing retirement or with large balances, for sales pitches. The plaintiffs allege sales representatives falsely portrayed Empower's 'managed account' program ... as the only recommended investment option."' [Williams‑Linzey v. Empower Advisory Group, LLC, No. 25‑14660 (D.N.J. complaint filed Aug. 15, 2025)

Allianz, Aon Face Lawsuit from DB Plan Fiduciaries Over Investment Strategy

"[The] fiduciary of the master trust holding the assets of the employee [DB] plans that participate in the National Retirement Program of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, has filed an [ERISA] lawsuit against Allianz Global Investors and Aon Investments USA. The trust claims that promised downside protection for several AllianzGI Structured Alpha funds was not implemented, resulting in 'staggering' losses to the trust during the market crash and volatility caused by the COVID-19 pandemic." [Blue Cross and Blue Shield Assoc. Nat. Emp. Benefits Comm. v. Allianz Global Investors U.S. LLC, No. 20-7606 (S.D.N.Y. complaint filed Sep. 16, 2020)]

Companies in Colgate-Palmolive Retirement Theft Case Try to Wash Hands of Liability

"Alight Solutions, Bank of New York Mellon and Colgate-Palmolive Co.'s employee relations committee all sought to toss a lawsuit brought against them by a former Colgate-Palmolive employee who had the entire balance of her retirement account stolen.... [The employee] filed a complaint against the companies in July, claiming they violated [ERISA] via a breach of fiduciary duty. This came after an individual impersonating her drained more than $750,000 from her account in March 2020 by successfully changing much of her account information, according to the complaint." [Disberry v. Employee Relations Committee of the Colgate-Palmolive Company, Alight Solutions, LLC, and the Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, No. 22-5778 (S.D.N.Y. complaint filed Jul. 7, 2022)]

District Court Denies Oneida Indian Nation's Immunity Defense to ERISA Lawsuit

"Judge Glenn Suddaby of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York in Syracuse declined a dismissal motion for governmental immunity by the Nation's hospitality and gaming company ... Suddaby's ruling on [ERISA] lawsuit, brought in December 2024 by three former police officers, said he wouldn't dismiss the case against the company's benefits plan and investment committee, because the retirement plan also covers non-government casino employees who represent most of the plan participants." [Jones v. Turning Stone Enterprises LLC, No. 24-1596 (N.D.N.Y. Dec. 9, 2025)]

Voya Accused of Layering 401(k)s With Unnecessary Fees

"According to the lawsuit ... Voya contracted with federally registered investment adviser Financial Engines Advisors LLC to provide advice to participants in Voya-administered retirement plans. Voya then charged participants a fee of as much as 50 basis points for this arrangement ... Voya's arrangement with Financial Engines is structured largely so that Voya can collect an unnecessary layer of fees from the retirement plans it oversees, according to the Nestle plan participant's complaint. In her view, this is an attempt by Voya to avoid federal laws limiting its ability to provide financial advice steering retirement savers toward its own products." [Patrico v. Voya Fin., Inc., No. 16-07070 (S.D.N.Y. complaint filed Sept. 9, 16]