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Defined Benefits Plans: Underfunded Plans (PDF)

17 pages."This chapter will provide an overview of the most common purposes for which the funding level of a single-employer PBGC-covered pension plan is determined, how assets and liabilities are determined for each of these purposes, what the key consequences are if a plan is underfunded for one or more of these purposes, what the key consequences are if the employer has failed to satisfy the minimum funding requirements for the plan, and what the key options are for dealing with unaffordable contributions." [Chapter 9 of Bloomberg Law Guide to Retirement Plan Designs]

TIAA Retirement Suit Foreshadows Future 401(k) Litigation (PDF)

"[The judge] said TIAA could be held liable as a knowing participant in the fiduciary breaches of its clients that sponsor the plans for their employees, even though the employers themselves aren't defendants in the suit.... TIAA's cross-selling -- a common industry practice -- would likely qualify as rollover advice subject to fiduciary restrictions[.]" [Carfora v. TIAA, No. 21-8384 (S.D.N.Y. May 31, 2024)]

Disclosure to Welfare Plan Participants: A Fiduciary Duty (PDF)

"The existing fiduciary principles ... can equally well -- and should -- be applied in the welfare plan context. This article will explore one such area -- the need to provide information to participants in group health plans[.]"

As ERISA Turns 40, Clouds on the Horizon (PDF)

"This article reviews proposals that [1] focus on deficit reduction and tax reform, or [2] make larger systemic changes that will change the role of tax-advantaged retirement plans.... [including:] [1] I.R.C. contribution limit ... [2] Administration proposal to limit the value of tax deductions ... [3] Tax reform proposals ... [4] Consequences of cutting tax incentives ... [5] myRA initiative ... [6] Pension system reform at the federal level ... [7] Proposed expansion of Federal Thrift Savings Plan ... [8] State-sponsored system reform ... [9] Proposals from academia ... [10] SPARK Institute's USERP proposal ... [11] SAFE Retirement Act ... [12] Proposed systemic changes."

A New Year, A New Stock Plan (PDF)

"The items listed [in this article] reflect recent changes in applicable corporate governance, securities, tax, and accounting rules.... [It] is usually preferable to seek shareholder approval for a new plan that covers the entire spectrum of desired improvements, globalization of the workforce, e-delivery innovations, and governance practices responsive to the concerns of shareholders and the standards enunciated by proxy advisory firms such as ISS and Glass Lewis."

Class Action Litigation Settlements and ERISA: What Does PTE 2003-39 Really Require? (PDF)

"To assess whether a plan should settle a claim, ERISA requires a decision-making process that considers each of the factors specified in PTE 2003-39, specifically: (1) the plan's likelihood of full recovery, (2) the risks and costs of litigation, (3) the value of claims forgone, (4) the scope of any claims release, and (5) the value of non-cash assets to be received by the plan, as well as factors that might reduce the plan's recovery, such as attorney's fees. The DOL expects that a value will be assigned to each of these factors, the weighting of which will differ depending on the type of case."

Getting Severance Right Through ERISA

"Just because an employer's practices are unwritten and informal doesn't mean that they are unenforceable; they can often create a legal obligation. The result could be an ERISA-covered plan without many of the employer protections that a carefully crafted plan can provide....If an employer designs its severance plan to fall within ERISA, it opens the door for defusing future litigation risks through ... well-established mechanisms for expediting and efficiently resolving ERISA disputes."