ERISA & Employee Benefits

The Wagner Law Group is pleased to announce that we have received IRS approval of our non-standardized defined contribution plan document, further bolstering our firm’s position at the forefront of the qualified retirement plan document and compliance realm. 

By Livia Q. Aber and Barry Salkin In August 2018, President Trump issued Executive Order 13847, Strengthening Retirement Security in America, one portion of which asked government agencies to explore the potential for broader use of electronic disclosure, as a way of improving the effectiveness of disclosures and reducing the costs and burdens of paper disclosure.

By Livia Quan Aber, Barry Salkin and Stephen Wilkes

On June 18, 2020, the Department of Labor took the next step toward providing guidance for multiple employer plans (MEPs) by issuing a Request for Information (RFI) seeking public comment on whether the DOL should issue a class exemption to provide a safe harbor for fiduciaries of MEPS, including a new type of “open” MEP known as a pooled employer plan (PEP), which was created by the Setting ...

By Barry Salkin, Ivelisse Berio LeBeau, Livia Quan Aber and Stephen Wilkes

On June 3, the Internal Revenue Service provided temporary relief from the requirement in IRS regulations that certain participant elections must be witnessed in the physical presence of a plan representative or notary.  While primarily intended to facilitate CARES Act coronavirus-related distributions and loans, this relief, which is retroactive to the beginning of the year and will be in effect ...

The third COVID-19 Stimulus package has provisions regarding retirement plans, including expanded and penalty-free withdrawal rights, expanded loan rights, extended rights to repay loans and withdrawals, and the deferral of mandatory distributions.  New guidance released on May 4, 2020, states that the IRS will be issuing more detailed guidance in the near future.  To the extent that the ...

Cybersecurity breaches of retirement plan participant accounts have occurred with increasing frequency in recent years.  Just this past April, a plan participant filed a complaint alleging ERISA breaches of fiduciary duty and violations of the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act against Abbott Laboratories, the plan sponsor, and Alight Solutions, the plan’s third party administrator and record keeper, ...

On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES Act (the “Act”) was passed. The bill is expected to provide relief for eligible small business through a loan guarantee program, the postponement of certain tax payments, and a tax credit. The Act states that the Administrator at the Small Business Administration (SBA) should issue guidance to lenders and agents ...

The third COVID-19 stimulus package has provisions regarding retirement plans, including expanded and penalty-free withdrawal rights, expanded loan rights, extended rights to repay loans and withdrawals, and a deferral of mandatory distributions. Coronavirus-Related Distributions The 10% early distribution penalty from retirement plans and IRAs under Section 72(t) of the Internal Revenue Code ...