Ari Sonneberg
Chief Marketing Officer, Partner
Practice Areas
Biography
Ari Sonneberg has been with The Wagner Law Group since 2001, specializing in the fields of ERISA and employee benefits. Ari advises and represents clients with respect to design, compliance and all other aspects of qualified and non-qualified employee benefit plans. He has extensive experience in drafting, designing, amending, and restating qualified and non-qualified employee benefit plans and related trusts, including money purchase pension plans, profit sharing plans, 401(k) plans, defined benefit plans, welfare benefit plans, medical expense reimbursement plans, 403(b) plans, and nonqualified deferred compensation plans. Ari frequently advises clients concerning government filings and correction programs associated with the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Labor, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
Additionally, Ari has also advised clients on terminating qualified defined benefit and defined contribution plans, including orphaned plans and plans under bankruptcy trustees. He also consults on matters such as HIPAA compliance in relation to employee benefit plans and has represented clients through governmental audits and subsequent negotiations with the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Labor. Ari also has significant experience drafting and reviewing qualified domestic relations orders (QDROs) with respect to the divorce-related division of retirement plan assets.
Prior to joining The Wagner Law Group, Ari was an associate in the Boston office of a prominent national law firm where he reviewed and analyzed commercial ground leases, analyzed issues relating to insurance, condemnation, assignment, subletting, percentage rent, use restrictions and operating covenants, termination rights, environmental conditions and liability issues. He also analyzed and made recommendations with respect to appropriate provisions for subordination, non-disturbance and mutual attornment rights as affecting ground lessors, ground lessees, subtenants and leasehold mortgagees.
Ari also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Charles E. Ramos, Supreme Court, New York County, Commercial Part.
Publications & Media
- Schwab and Fidelity Halt of BlackRock’s Money-Market Fund ETF Trades Was No Shock – RIABiz, March 25, 2025 (PDF)
- Bank of America-Nemesis Lawyer Files Class Action — Again — Over Vanguard $100 ‘Junk Fee’ – RIABiz, March 21, 2025 (PDF)
- The Unprecedented and Once ‘Unthinkable’ State Street-Apollo ETF Rollout is Still Setting Off Alarm Bells – RIABiz, March 14, 2025 (PDF)
- BlackRock Rattles Giant Saber at Schwab and Fidelity – RIABiz, February 21, 2025 (PDF)
- Ex-Merrill Lynch ‘Smoothie’ Broker Loses Big in FINRA Arbitration – Ari Sonneberg, RIABiz, February 13, 2025 (PDF)
- Trump Mandates 10 Old Regulations Cut Per New One – Self Employed, February 10, 2025 (PDF)
- Trump Executive Order Means Any New DOL Regulation Requires Elimination of 10 Existing Ones – 401(k) Specialist, February 3, 2025 (PDF)
- McKinsey Suddenly Puts its Secretive $23-Billion RIA Under ‘Strategic Review’ with M&A Shop – RIABiz, January 29, 2025 (PDF)
- Despite Lawsuits, Schwab Slashes Sweep Yields 89% in Five Months – RIABiz, January 8, 2025 (PDF)
- TradePMR Sale to Robinhood Sends Ripples Through the RIA Industry – RIABiz, November 19, 2024 (PDF)
- Vivek Ramaswamy $30-Million Venture Launches Wealth RIA – Just Ahead of the Election – RIAbiz, November, 5, 2024 (PDF)
- RIAs May Face Ticking Time Bomb After SEC Slams a $1.9-Billion RIA for Neglecting ‘Orphan’ Accounts While Charging Fees – RIABiz, October 26, 2024 (PDF)
- Envestnet’s Five-Year Legal Slugfest with Fintech Over Alleged ‘Trojan Horse’ Theft of Killer App Cleared for Trial, Likely a Speedbump, Not a Wrench, for Bain Acquisition or Yodlee Sale – RIABiz, October, 23, 204 (PDF)
- Federal Judge Who Tossed Stephen Greco’s Sweeping RIA Lawsuit Grants Leave to Refile – RIABiz, September 27, 2024 (PDF)
- Secure 2.0 ‘Saver’s Match’ May Boost Retirement Readiness – Rethinking65, September 18, 2024 (PDF)
- Salim Ramji Takes Vanguard CEO Helm With Good Vibes But the Company’s 50 million ‘Owners’ May Expect More Privileges – RIABiz, July 9, 2024 (PDF)
- Providing Retirement Benefits Can Benefit Employers – PLANSPONSOR, July 1, 2024 (PDF)
- FDIC Bid to Strip BlackRock and Vanguard of Superpower ‘Has Legs’ – RIABiz, April 24, 2023 (PDF)
- What to Consider When Adding Retirement Income Options – PLANSPONSOR, November 1, 2023 (PDF)
- Blacklisted ‘Woke’ Firms Like BlackRock and State Street Still Have a Lock on AUM in Oil States Like Oklahoma – RIABiz, November 1, 2023 (PDF)
- Vanguard Cleans Up Legal Matters, Settles Two Suits, Loses Third – RIABiz, October 27, 2023 (PDF)
- Goldman Sachs’ Sweeping Legal Effort to Crush ‘United Capital’ Advisor Exodus May Prove Largely Meaningless – RIABiz, October 9, 2023 (PDF)
- The RIA Business Can Heave a Sigh of Relief as Grayscale Beats the SEC in Court – RIABiz, August 29, 2023 (PDF)
- Fidelity Investments is Suddenly Fending off a Fresh Wave of AI Suitors for its Vast Recordkeeping Data Trove – RIABiz, July 28, 2023 (PDF)
- Rudy Adolf Dodges Questions on Focus Financial Earnings Call – RIABiz, February 21, 2023 (PDF)
- Financial Aspects of Divorce in Massachusetts: Division of Retirement Assets in Divorce – Co-author, MCLE New England, 2nd Edition, 2023
- Vanguard Cites Shunned Founder Jack Bogle to Deflect Criticism After Epic ESG Flip-Flop – Ari Sonneberg, RIZBiz, January 3, 2023 (PDF)
- Making Lemonade of Legal Lemons, New Wave of ERISA Class Actions Accuse Fiduciaries of ‘Imprudently’ Using Low-Fee, High-Rated Funds, Like BlackRock TDFs – RIABiz, September 22, 2022 (PDF)
- RIA wildfire erupted on Twitter after Clarence Thomas put same-sex marriage on conservative hit list with ‘Roe v. Wade’ – RIABiz, August 25, 2022 (PDF)
- Boom, Boom, Boom, Charles Schwab Corp. Just Spent $220 Million to Shuck Three Lawsuits – RIABiz, July 18, 2022 (PDF)
- Massachusetts and Vanguard Group Reach Interesting Settlement that Gives the $8-trillion Manager a Shot at Avoiding 49 copycat Suits – RIZBiz, July 7, 2022 (PDF)
- Grayscale Investments is Suing the SEC to Get its ETF Approved but Bitcoin’s Swoon Means ‘Public Sympathy’ May Swing in Favor of the Regulator, a Rules Lawyer Says – RIABiz, July 1, 2022 (PDF)
- Grayscale CEO’s Threatened Lawsuit Against the SEC, in Case it Rejects His Firm’s Spot-Bitcoin ETF Application – RIABiz, April 1, 2022 (PDF)
- Charles Schwab & Co. registers TD Ameritrade brokers to rep Schwab products and to retain clients who chose to convert to ‘Schwab’ – RIABiz, February 8, 2022 (PDF)
- Plans Must Cover Over-the-Counter COVID Tests – Contributing author, Lexis Nexis Practical Guidance, January 2022
- McKinsey’s $31-Billion RIA for McKinsey Staffers Pays $18 Million Fine – RiaBiz, December 22, 2021 (PDF)
- Apex IPO Goes Kaput –Potentially Over Crypto, SPAC Ties–Leaving Close to $1 billion Hanging and Blood in the Water for Hungry M&A Sharks – RIABiz, December 16, 2021 (PDF)
- Will the Supreme Court Give Plan Sponsors Any Relief From Excessive Fee Lawsuits? – PLANSPONSOR, December 13, 2021 (PDF)
- Getting Retirement Plan Help From the IRS – PLANSPONSOR, November 3, 2021 (PDF)
- RIAs May Face Ticking Time Bomb After SEC Slams a $1.9-billion RIA for Neglecting ‘Orphan’ Accounts While Charging Fees, a Problem that may be Industrywide – Ari Sonneberg, RIABiz, October 27, 2021 (PDF)
- Checking Pre-IPO Boxes, Robinhood Makes Quick Work of FINRA with $70-Million Settlement – Ari Sonneberg, RIABiz, July 9, 2021 (PDF)
- Charles Schwab Corp. to Pay up to $200 Million in Federal Regulatory Charges, Following SEC Robo-Advice Probe – Ari Sonneberg, RIABiz, July 2, 2021 (PDF)
- Fidelity and Schwab Oddly Take Opposite Sides on Issue Critical to Money Market Funds as an SEC, Alarmed by Systemic Risks, Puts NAVs Under Spotlight – Ari Sonneberg, RIABIz, May 10, 2021 (PDF)
- Once They Catch On, PEPs Could Grow Exponentially – PLANADVISER, April 16, 2021 (PDF)
- Visa Ended Plaid Bid to get DOJ off its Back; the DOJ is Still Breathing Down its Neck – RIABiz, March 29, 2021 (PDF)
- How to Choose a PEP – PLANADVISER, January/February 2021 (PDF)
- Robinhood Allegedly Implied a Fiduciary Duty to Novice Investors in the Marketing of its ‘Game-Like’ Trading App – RIABiz, November 16, 2020 (PDF)
- DOJ Files Suit to Stop Visa Purchase of Plaid, a Nightmarish Turn of Events for the $5.3-Billion Dream Deal – Ari Sonneberg, RIABiz, November 6, 2020 (PDF)
- With Visa-Plaid Deal Closing Five Months Delayed, Feds Accuse Bain & Co. of Stonewalling on Pricing Strategy Documents that Cast Light on Anti-Trust Hotspot – RIABiz, October 28, 2020 (PDF)
- Charles Schwab Corp. Cleared to Close TD Merger Tuesday, and ‘Schwabitrade’ Looks Less Fearsome Than Anticipated – RIABiz, October 1, 2020 (PDF)
- ‘Hundreds’ of Charles Schwab Staff Tasked With Wiring TD Ameritrade Merger to Soon Soar to ‘Thousands’ – RIABiz, August 4, 2020 (PDF)
- Schwab’s Merger with TD Ameritrade was Sterling until the Covid-19 Pandemic and Financial Collapse – RIABiz, April 14, 2020
- What To Do If Your Employer Suspends 401(k) Matching Contributions – Forbes, April 10, 2020
- COVID-19 Throws a Curve Ball at RIA M&A Market – RIABiz, April 10, 2020
- Schwab Execs all but Dash RIA Hopes for TD Ameritrade VEO One Survival – RIABiz, February 7, 2020
- What Exactly to Make of the Barron’s Article About Orion Being Listed for Sale by Raymond James – RIABiz, Janaury 18, 2020
- Fidelity wrests high-profile Amazon 401(k) business from Vanguard – RIABiz, January 9, 2019
- Antitrust Suit Against Schwab and TD Ameritrade Merger Draws ‘Stunt’ Accusations and Judge Agrees – RIABiz, January 3, 2020
- Breaking up is Hard to do: Schwab and TD Ameritrade Both on Hook for $1 billion Should Either Firm Get Cold Feet, Shareholders Revolt, or Antitrust Regulators Quash Deal – RIABizi, December 6, 2019
- Wealthfront is Again Forced to Disclose a Bad Mistake – RiABiz, October 19, 2019
- As SEC’s ‘zero tolerance’ era for RIAs commences post-DOL, a regulatory law firm makes anticipatory hires – RIABiz, October 18, 2018
- “The Impact of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 on 401(k) Plans,” Massachusetts Bar Association Section Review, Volume 4, Number 3, Summer 2002
- “Termination of Tax-Qualified Defined Contribution Retirement Benefit Plans,” (PDF) UBS Financial Services Seminar, August 5, 2011 (Palm Beach Gardens, Florida)
- “Advising Your Clients Regarding Small Business Retirement Plans,” October 2002, Massachusetts Bar Association (Boston, MA) – Program chair and speaker
- “ERISA: Pension Plan Development and Administration in Massachusetts,” November 2002 – Speaker
- “Retirement Planning for You and Your Clients,” June 2004, Massachusetts Bar Association (Boston, MA) – Speaker
- “Drafting Legal Documents,” September 2004, Stonehill College (Easton, MA) – Health Care Administration Law course – Guest speaker
- “Significant Changes to the Tax Rules Governing Deferred Compensation Arrangements under the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004: What You Need to Know Before December 31, 2004 to Comply With These Important Changes,” December 2004, Massachusetts Bar Association – Program Chair and speaker
Classes & Seminars
- Dewan and Beyond – The Creation, Codification, and Implementation of QDROs 2024 – Panelist, Pennsylvania Bar Institute CLE webinar, February 27, 2024
- "Termination of Tax-Qualified Defined Contribution Retirement Benefit Plans," (PDF) UBS Financial Services Seminar, August 5, 2011 (Palm Beach Gardens, Florida)
- "Advising Your Clients Regarding Small Business Retirement Plans," October 2002, Massachusetts Bar Association (Boston, MA) – Program chair and speaker
- "ERISA: Pension Plan Development and Administration in Massachusetts," November 2002 – Speaker
- "Retirement Planning for You and Your Clients," June 2004, Massachusetts Bar Association (Boston, MA) – Speaker
- "Drafting Legal Documents," September 2004, Stonehill College (Easton, MA) – Health Care Administration Law course – Guest speaker
Television Appearances
Education
- Brooklyn Law School, Brooklyn, New York
- Juris Doctor - 06/2000
- CUNY Queens College, Flushing, New York
- B.A., Bachelor of Arts - 02/1997
- Honors: magna cum laude
- Honors: Dean's List (all semesters)
- Honors: Honors in Political Science
- Honors: Golden Key National Honor Society
- Honors: Business and Liberal Arts Honors Program – Student Representative
- Major: Political Science
Bar Admissions
- U.S. District Court District of Massachusetts
- Massachusetts
Professional Associations
- Massachusetts Bar Association – Appointed to Taxation Law Section Council (2001 - Present) and Chair of the ERISA Section Practice Group, Massachusetts Bar Association (2001 - 2005)
- American Bar Association
Honors
- Rising Star Award, New England Super Lawyers Magazine
- Marquis Who's Who: Who's Who in America - As of 2020
Languages
- Hebrew
Past Positions
- Day, Berry & Howard, Boston, MA, Attorney, 2000 to 2001
- Rosenfeld & Maidenbaum, Cedarhurst, NY, Legal Assistant, 1995 to 2000
- Honorable Charles E. Ramos, Supreme Court, New York County, Commercial Part, New York, NY, Law Clerk, 1998
Law Alerts
New FinCEN Rule Exempts Domestic Entities from CTA Reporting Requirements
On March 21, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued an Interim Final Rule (“Rule”) that provides a reprieve from the beneficial ownership reporting requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) for domestic...
Corporate Transparency Act Beneficial Ownership Interest Reporting: Game Off…for the Moment
The still short, but eventful history of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and its controversial beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting requirements, should have made it predictable that another bend in the road lay ahead. After the Treasury Department’s...
An ERISA Journey for ESG Via American Airlines by Way of Utah?
By Andrew Oringer, Barry Salkin, Jon Schultze and Ari Sonneberg Both supporters and opponents of the consideration of environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) goals can point to decisions by U.S. district courts in 2025 that are consistent with their positions on...
FinCEN Issues New CTA Beneficial Ownership Reporting Deadline After Court Lifts Nationwide Injunction
On the heels of a court decision in its favor, the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), has issued a statement on its website indicating that the beneficial ownership reporting requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) are...
President Trump Issues 10-to-1 Deregulation Executive Order
On January 31, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order (the “Order”) designed to drastically reduce the overall amount of federal government regulation on the books. The underlying stated goal of the order is to eliminate the “job killing and...