Papa Has a Brand New Bag
All in the Family – Introducing Family Owned Life Insurance™ (aka FOLI™)
TAKE A CHANCE ON ME! PART II - Embracing the Magic of Private Placement Life Insurance and Private Placement Variable Annuities
RETURN TO FOREVER - What Game Shall We Play Today?
NOWOTNY KNOWS SQUAT! Part IV Using Post-Retirement Medical Plans to Raise AUM and Sell Life Insurance
NOWOTNY ON DEATH AND TAXES EPISODE 35 USING POST-RETIREMENT MEDICAL PLANS TO RAISE AUM
NOWOTNY KNOWS SQUAT! Part 3 Using Malta Pension Plans to Raise AUM and Sell More Life Insurance
NOWOTNY KNOWS SQUAT! Part 2 Using PPLI and PPVA Annuities to Raise Assets Under Management and Sell More Life Insurance
INTRODUCING MALTA SPLIT DOLLAR
WHERE EAGLES DARE-INTRODUCING MALTA SPLIT DOLLAR
Private Placement Life Insurance Discussion Podcast
ISLA DEL ENCANTO - INTRODUCING BORICUA SPLIT DOLLAR
Isla del Encanto-Introducing Boricua Split Dollar
Everything You Need to Know About Beneficiary Designations
THE WONDER YEARS WEBINAR
HEAVEN CAN WAIT
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced two settlements with major insurance companies this month that highlight the importance of employers avoiding the collection of group life insurance premiums from employees until...more
Preparing for 2026 - Four ways to build flexibility into your estate plan - January 1, 2026, is a significant date for estate planning. On that day, the federal gift and estate tax exemption amount set by the Tax Cuts...more
In the recent case of Schaddelee as Cotrustee of Ronald Schaddelee Irrevocable Trust v. Deleon as Cotrustee of Ronald Schaddelee Irrevocable Trust, 2023 WL 4143639 (Mich Ct App Jun 22, 2023) (unpublished), the Michigan Court...more
A recent news release indicates that the US Department of Labor (DOL) has an investigatory initiative focused on the issue of “insurability” under life insurance benefits. This issue arises when insurance premiums are...more
The legal and regulatory scheme is set up in favor of life insurance companies to the detriment of the agents and customers. The imbalance of duties imposed upon a life insurance agent in the sale of life insurance policies...more
More than 25 years have elapsed since the SEC adopted Exchange Act Rule 17a-4(f) governing electronic recordkeeping by broker-dealers. In an effort to update the rule to reflect “technology neutral” concepts, the SEC adopted...more
It was a busy end to the year, as courts handed down several key insurance decisions before ringing in 2023. The Ohio Supreme Court considered the contours of “direct physical loss or damage” in two separate decisions –...more
This month’s Friday Five covers cases relating to discovery in ERISA benefits cases, an appellate court strictly interpreting ERISA regulatory deadlines, a district court authorizing an ERISA breach of fiduciary duty claim...more
In a case of first impression for the court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit recently ruled that an insurer owes a fiduciary duty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to all...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed a District Court’s finding that Principal Life Insurance Company (“Principal”) did not breach its fiduciary duties regarding its stable value contract for...more
This month’s Friday Five addresses cases considering: (1) whether monetary relief in the amount of lost benefits is an available remedy for breach of fiduciary duty; (2) the validity of an ex-spouse’s beneficiary designation...more
The closure of the Studebaker-Packard Corporation car manufacturing plant in 1963 was a major catalyst leading into the enactment of the Employee Retirement Income Savings Act of 1974 (“ERISA.”) ...more
Section 405 of the Employee Retirement Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) provides for joint liability for co-fiduciaries of a pension, health or welfare benefit plan. ...more
GST taxes - Plan carefully to avoid surprises - If you wish to share some of your wealth with your grandchildren or great grandchildren — or if your estate plan is likely to benefit these generations — it’s critical to...more
The Eleventh Circuit recently affirmed an Alabama district court’s decision granting summary judgment in favor of Allstate Insurance Company in a consolidated ERISA class action challenging Allstate’s decision to stop paying...more
On October 19, 2021, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied a widow supplemental group life insurance benefits of $300,000 upon her husband’s death even though he had paid the premiums for the coverage for four years...more
This month’s Friday Five covers cases relating to: (1) whether an insurer may seek reimbursement of LTD benefits after a plaintiff obtains a tort settlement, and the scope of discovery on class claims regarding the same; (2)...more
In Bellon v. PPG Emp. Life & Other Benefits Plan, PPG Industries, Inc. & the PPG Plan Administrator, the Northern District of West Virginia recently addressed whether a predecessor company may be held liable for a decision...more
Dear Department of Labor: The fiduciary role of selecting 401(k) and 403(b) plan investment options based on diversification and projected risk and return is too easy. Can we sacrifice some returns in order to promote social...more
Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Co. and Great-West Capital Management, LLC (together, “Great-West”) have won a judgment that they did not violate their fiduciary duty by receiving excessive investment advisory and...more
In Sullivan-Mestecky v. Verizon Communs. Inc., 961 F.3d 91 (2d Cir. 2020), the Second Circuit held that a claim under Section 502(a)(3) of ERISA could proceed, where the beneficiary pled that the plan and its agents...more
In a recent 5–4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court shut the door on defined-benefit plan participants’ standing to sue under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)....more
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals recently decided a case, Russell v. Liberty Insurance Underwriters Inc., involving a dispute between the co-owners of a business and the widow of their deceased former partner....more
The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts recently granted Fidelity’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that Fidelity and its affiliates violated ERISA’s fiduciary duties by receiving “infrastructure fees”...more
As the June 30, 2020, compliance date approaches, broker-dealers are taking steps to implement Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), which establishes a new standard of conduct when making recommendations to retail customers of...more