Seth F. Gaudreau
Associate
Practice Areas
- ERISA and Employee Benefits
- Executive Compensation
- Investment Management
- Litigation
- Fiduciary Compliance
- Retirement Plans
- Labor, Employment & HR
Bio
Seth Gaudreau concentrates his practice in ERISA business litigation, and investment management law. Within the ERISA field, he conducts research on all matters relating to employment law, which covers qualified and unqualified benefit plans, welfare plans, and retirement plans.
He also crafts various plan documents and employer administrative forms. Seth assists clients in the filing of Forms 5500 and 5588 with the U.S. Department of Labor and has significant experience advising investment managers and other clients on key provisions within ERISA Title I and in negotiating other ERISA issues related to investment management services. His duties also include drafting legal memoranda and briefs for litigation.
Prior to joining The Wagner law Group, Seth was associated with leading law firms in Boston and Washington, D.C.
Publications & Media
- A Guide to the SEC’s Reg BI Bulletins – PLANADVISER, August 25, 2022 (PDF)
- Are You Ready for the SEC’s New Marketing Rule? – National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA), May 6, 2022 (PDF)
- November SEC Advertising Rule Compliance Date Fast Approaching – PLANADVISER, May 5, 2022 (PDF)
- Cybersecurity A Major SEC Focus in 2022 – Co-author, 401(k) Specialist, January 26, 2022 (PDF)
- Form CRS: What Investors Need to Know Now – Co-author with Patrice Maloney-Knauff, The Streeet’s Retirement Daily, July 22, 2020
- Status of the DOL Fiduciary Conflict of Interest Rule as it Applies to HSAs that are Part of a High Deductible Health Plan – ECFC Flex Reporter, Volume 21, Number 3, September 2017
- Postponement of the ERISA Fiduciary Rules on ERISA Investments: Background and Possible Impact – ECFC Flex Reporter, Vol. 21, No. 1, March 2017
Education
- Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, District of Columbia
- LL.M. - 2010
- Major: Securities and Financial Regulation
- Suffolk University Law School, Boston, Massachusetts
- J.D. - 2007
- Dennison University, Ohio
- B.A. - 2008
- Major: Economics
Bar Admissions
- District of Columbia, 2012
- Massachusetts, 2008
Past Positions
- Antonoplos & Associates, Associate Attorney, 2013 to 2014
- Tanenholz & Ash, LLP, Attorney, 2012 to 2013
- Iron Mountain, Inc., Attorney, 2011 to 2012
- Geode Capital Management, LLC, Attorney, 2008 to 2009
- Oppenheimer & Company, Financial Consultant, 2002 to 2004
- Ladenburg & Thalmann, Financial Consultant, 2002
- Hales & Company, Financial Analyst, 2001
Law Alerts
Merger and Acquisition Considerations for Employee Benefit Plans
By Seth Gaudreau and Stephen Wilkes In the context of mergers and acquisitions, an acquisition target’s qualified retirement plans, health plans, executive compensation arrangements, and benefit programs (referred to collectively as "benefit programs") can all be a...
SEC Matters to Consider in the New Year: 2024 Exam Priorities and Off-Channel Enforcement Actions
By Seth Gaureau and Stephen Wilkes Since taking office, Chair Gary Gensler has pursued a robust agenda and expectations are high for another year of regulatory scrutiny. Below we discuss recent actions the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has taken...
SEC Speaks to Importance of Naming Convention
By Seth Gaudreau and Stephen Wilkes SEC Commissioner Crenshaw reminded us last year that, despite the poetic beauty of Shakespeare’s observation that, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet”, names really do matter in the investment world. At the end of...
SEC’s Recent Marketing Rule Risk Alert Identifies Additional Areas of Focus During Compliance Examinations
By Seth Gaudreau and Stephen Wilkes On June 8, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) Division of Examinations (the “Division”) published a risk alert (the “Risk Alert” - found here) focused on its examination of investment advisers (specifically...
IRS Publishes Registered Apprenticeship Guidance
By Stephen Wilkes and Seth Gaudreau On November 30, 2022, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and the Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”) published Notice 2022-61 (the “Notice”) in the Federal Register. Among the provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022...