ERISA Section 3(21)(A) and Discretion - Barry Salkin, Benefits Law Journal, Vol. 36 No. 3, Autumn 2023 (PDF)
ERISA & Employee Benefits
SEC, DOL, FINRA Regulatory Issues – Annuities in ERISA Retirement Plans
SEC, DOL, FINRA Regulatory Issues - Annuities in ERISA Retirement Plans - Stephen Wilkes, speaker, National Association of Compliance Professionals (NSCP) 2023 National Conference, Dallas, TX,...
Court Rules ERISA Preempts Oklahoma Law Regulating PBMs
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, in Pharmaceutical Care Management v. Mulready, has ruled that a state law regulating pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) is preempted by the Employee...
The Future Is Now for ERISA Fiduciary Duties Around Plan Data
The Future Is Now for ERISA Fiduciary Duties Around Plan Data - Michael Schloss, Bloomberg Law, September, 27. 2023 (PDF)
Biden ESG Rule Survives Challenge in Court. ‘Tonal Shift’ May be Biggest Victory, Lawyer Says
Biden ESG Rule Survives Challenge in Court. ‘Tonal Shift’ May be Biggest Victory, Lawyer Says - Andrew Oringer, CNBC, September 27, 2023 (PDF)
Unlocking the Power of Retirement Plans for Climate Action
Unlocking the Power of Retirement Plans for Climate Action - The Wagner Law Group, 401(k) Specialist, September 25, 2023 (PDF)
4 Takeaways For Benefits Attys After Judge Clears ESG Rule
4 Takeaways For Benefits Attys After Judge Clears ESG Rule - Andrew Oringer, Law360, September 22, 2023 (PDF)
Guidelines for Mental Health and Medical/Surgical Claims Need Not Be Identical
The U S District Court for the District of Utah has ruled, in L.D. v. United HealthCare, that a group health plan does not violate the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (“MHPAEA”) if it...
New Strategy in 401(k) Litigation: Ask for Settlement Before Suit is Filed
New Strategy in 401(k) Litigation: Ask for Settlement Before Suit is Filed - Andrew Oringer, Investment News, September 20, 2023 (PDF)
Supreme Court Asked to Weigh in on Arbitration, Again
Supreme Court Asked to Weigh in on Arbitration, Again - Jordan Mamorsky, Pensions & Investments, September 18, 2023 (PDF)
New Republican Discrimination Bill Adds Little to Current Law: Lawyers
New Republican Discrimination Bill Adds Little to Current Law: Lawyers - Mark Greenstein, FUNDfire, September 18, 2023 (PDF)
Latest ERISA Standard Ruling Could Lead To More Dismissals By Kellie Mejdrich
Latest ERISA Standard Ruling Could Lead To More Dismissals - Andrew Oringer, Law360, September 15, 2023 (PDF)
COBRA Notice Need Not Be Single Notification
In deciding Bryant v. Walgreen Co., the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois addressed several important aspects of the COBRA notification requirements. Law. Employers must...
Department of Labor Recovers $22.5 million for ESOP
Department of Labor Recovers $22.5 million for ESOP - Andrew Oringer, PLANSPONSOR, September 13, 2023 (PDF)
DOL Braces For Hostile Reception To Fiduciary Rule Rewrite
DOL Braces For Hostile Reception To Fiduciary Rule Rewrite - Andrew Oringer, Law360, September 12, 2023 (PDF)
Highlights of 2023 PBGC Meeting With ABA’s Joint Committee on Employee Benefits
By Harold Ashner and Israel Goldowitz On September 11, 2023, the American Bar Association (“ABA”) posted a summary of the May 3, 2023, meeting between representatives of the Pension Benefit Guaranty...
New Fiduciary Rule Sent to OMB By Department of Labor
New Fiduciary Rule Sent to OMB By Department of Labor - Thomas Clark, Jr., NAPA, September 9, 2023 (PDF)
Why Some Ex-Workers at Bed Bath & Beyond Face 401(k) Losses
Why Some Ex-Workers at Bed Bath & Beyond Face 401(k) Losses - Israel Golodowitz, New York Times, September 9, 2023 (PDF)
Claims Denial Overturned for Failure to Follow Claims Procedures
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, in David P. v. United Healthcare Ins. Co., has reversed a group health plan’s benefits claim denial because the plan’s claims administrator failed to...
IRS Issues Transitional Guidance for Required Minimum Distributions
IRS Issues Transitional Guidance for Required Minimum Distributions - Marcia Wagner, 401(k) Advisor, Volume 30, No. 8, September 2023
Law Firm Letter Backs DOL Rule on ERISA Fiduciaries Using Climate Factors
Law Firm Letter Backs DOL Rule on ERISA Fiduciaries Using Climate Factors - chief investment officer, September 1, 2023 (PDF)
Wagner Law Group: Climate Funds, ERISA May Co-Exist, With Prudence
Wagner Law Group: Climate Funds, ERISA May Co-Exist, With Prudence - PLANSPONSOR, August 31, 2023 (PDF)
SECURE 2.0 Roth Catch-Up Delay: More IRS Guidance to Come
SECURE 2.0 Roth Catch-Up Delay: More IRS Guidance to Come - The Wagner Law Group Law Alert, 401(k) Specialist, August, 31, 2023 (PDF)
IRS Delays Roth Catch-up Contribution Change to Defined Contribution Plans
By John Schultze and Barry Salkin One of the changes made by the SECURE 2.0 Act requires that catch-up contributions made by employees with FICA compensation from an employer sponsoring a 401(k),...
HHS Issues Warning About Online Tracking
The Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) and the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) have issued a letter, dated July 20, 2023 (the “Letter”),...
Legal Opinion Letter Released by Business Climate Finance Affirms Companies’ Ability to Consider ESG Factors in Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan Selection Process
Legal Opinion Letter Released by Business Climate Finance Affirms Companies' Ability to Consider ESG Factors in Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan Selection Process - businesswire, August 29, 2023...
The RIA Business Can Heave a Sigh of Relief as Grayscale Beats the SEC in Court
The RIA Business Can Heave a Sigh of Relief as Grayscale Beats the SEC in Court - Ari Sonneberg, RIABiz, August 29, 2023 (PDF)
9th Circ. Reopens Door To Reprocessing In UBH Battle
9th Circ. Reopens Door To Reprocessing In UBH Battle - Andrew Oringer, Law360, August 25, 2023, (PDF)
IRS Releases ACA Affordability Rates for 2024
The Internal Revenue Service has issued Revenue Procedure 2023-29 to implement the 2024 index adjustments for certain Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) contribution percentages used to determine...
Former Director Sues Howard University Pension Plan
Former Director Sues Howard University Pension Plan - Andrew Oringer, PLANSPONSOR, August 21, 2023 (PDF)
10th Circ.’s Okla. PBM Ruling Could Curtail State Regulation
10th Circ.'s Okla. PBM Ruling Could Curtail State Regulation - Andrew Oringer, Law360, August 18, 2023 (PDF)
IRS Issues Guidance on Taxation of Restricted Stock Units to Employees Working in United States and Abroad
By Barry Salkin In a global economy, it will frequently be the case that employees of multinational organizations will be employed in both the United States and abroad. In Chief Counsel Advice...
11 Attorneys from The Wagner Law Group to be Recognized in 2024 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America©
Boston, MA, August 17, 2023 – The Wagner Law Group, widely recognized as the country’s top ERISA and employee benefits law firm, is delighted to announce that 11 of its attorneys will be recognized...
DOL Revises Medicaid/CHIP Model Notice
The Department of Labor (“DOL”) has released a revised Model Notice for employers to use to inform employees about the potential for them to receive state-provided premium assistance subsidies to...
Claims Appeals Procedures Must be in Formal Plan Documents
Claims Appeals Procedures Must be in Formal Plan Documents - Marcia Wagner, 401(k) Advisor, Volume 30, No. 7, July/August 2023
9th Circ. ERISA Fee Ruling May Spur High Court Intervention
9th Circ. ERISA Fee Ruling May Spur High Court Intervention - Andrew Oringer, Law360, August 9, 2023 (PDF)
Failure to Follow Claims Regulations Results in De Novo Review
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, in Rhodes v. First Reliance, has ruled that an insurer’s denial of a long-term disability (“LTD”) claim must be reviewed under the de...
Departments Consider Potential Safe Harbor for Nonquantitative Treatment Limitations under the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act Regarding Network Adequacy
By Dannae Delano, Roberta Casper Watson and Barry Salkin On July 25, the Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services (the “Departments”) issued proposed regulations and other...
3 Takeaways From The PBGC’s Latest Fiscal Health Checkup
3 Takeaways From The PBGC's Latest Fiscal Health Checkup - Israel Goldowitz, Law360, August 4, 2023 (PDF)
Agencies Issue Proposed Regulations on Mental Health Parity Implementation
HHS, DOL and IRS (collectively, the “Agencies”) have jointly issued proposed regulations to provide guidance on the implementation of the requirements of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction...
UnitedHealth Group Insurance TPA, UMR Sued by DOL
UnitedHealth Group Insurance TPA, UMR Sued by DOL - Andrew Oringer, PLANSPONSOR, August 2, 2023 (PDF)
CMS Recommends Extension of Special Enrollment for Individuals Losing Medicaid and CHIP
By Roberta Watson, Dannae Delano and Barry Salkin Employers frequently provide group health plan coverage for their employees through pre-tax contributions to a cafeteria plan. Elections under a...
Departments Issue Guidance on No Surprises Act and Limitations on Cost Sharing Under the Affordable Care Act
By Dannae Delano, Roberta Watson and Barry Salkin In FAQ Part 60, the Departments of Health and Human Service, Treasury, and Labor (the “Departments”) addressed limitations on cost sharing under the...
Pension benefits at Yellow Corp. secured by Teamsters fund bailout this year
Pension Benefits at Yellow Corp. Secured by Teamsters Fund Bailout This Year - Michael Schloss, Pensions & Investments, August 1, 2023 (PDF)
Fidelity Investments is Suddenly Fending off a Fresh Wave of AI Suitors for its Vast Recordkeeping Data Trove
Fidelity Investments is Suddenly Fending off a Fresh Wave of AI Suitors for its Vast Recordkeeping Data Trove - Ari Sonneberg, RIABiz, July 28, 2023 (PDF)
Plan Penalized for Failure to Follow Its Own Provisions
In Laake v. Benefits Committee, Western & Southern Financial Group Co., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit determined that the de novo standard of review applies where an employer’s...
IRS Issues Transitional Guidance for Required Minimum Distributions
By Jon Schultze and Barry Salkin In response to changes made by the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0) to the required minimum distribution (“RMD”) rules of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”),...
DOL Advises Plan Sponsors to Extend Enrollment Period for Employees Losing Medicaid
DOL Advises Plan Sponsors to Extend Enrollment Period for Employees Losing Medicaid - Roberta Casper Watson, PLANSPONSOR, July 24, 2023 (PDF)
ERISA Arbitrability Battles May Require High Court Guidance
ERISA Arbitrability Battles May Require High Court Guidance - Andrew Oringer, Law360, July 21, 2022 (PDF)
Departments Propose Regulations on Short-Term Limited Duration Insurance and Indemnity Insurance Excepted Benefits
By Dannae Delano, Roberta Casper Watson and Barry Salkin On July 7, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury (the “Departments”) issued proposed regulations modifying the...