Protection of Critical Infrastructure via LIPA and ICTS
Compliance Perspectives: Sanctions, Data and Vetting Third Parties
ITAR for Facility Security Officers
Podcast - Credit Funds: How Managers Can Avoid and Mitigate ERISA Conflicts
What has changed with the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) final regulations and certain prohibited transaction exemptions (PTEs)? Is it really that bad even for plan sponsors, as we hear from the many critics of the DOL’s...more
On January 24, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published the final rule amending the procedures for filing an individual prohibited transaction exemption application. The amended regulation (the “Procedures”)...more
The DOL’s prohibited transaction exemption (PTE) 2020-02 (Improving Investment Advice for Workers & Retirees), allows broker-dealers and their registered representatives (advisors) to receive conflicted compensation resulting...more
The DOL has issued FAQs that generally explain PTE 2020-02 and the expanded definition of fiduciary advice. In FAQ 17, the DOL discusses both the implications of payout grids and mitigation techniques to minimize...more
On October 25, 2021, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) released Field Assistance Bulletin 2021-02 (FAB 2021-02), which extends its non-enforcement policies regarding certain rules applicable to fiduciaries who provide...more
The DOL “Fiduciary Rule,” FAQ 14: Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest - This series focuses on the DOL’s new fiduciary “rule”, which was effective on February 16. This, and the next several, articles look at the Frequently...more
From 1996-2020, the US Department of Labor granted more than 1,200 individual exemptons from the ERISA prohibited transaction rules. One of the distinctive features of ERISA is its prohibition, in ERISA section 406 as a...more
On December 18, 2020, the US Department of Labor (DOL or Department) adopted with limited changes its Proposal 3.0 regarding ERISA fiduciary investment advice, focused on the fiduciary status of rollover advice and a “best...more
On June 29, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (the Department) formally reinstated its “five-part test” for determining what constitutes “investment advice” under ERISA and Section 4975 of the Internal Revenue Code (the...more
I am always against conflict of interest, going back to the day pre-fee disclosure when producing third party administrators (TPAs) were not transparent about the revenue sharing they collect. Beyond that, I’m also against...more
Calif. Supreme Court: San Diegans for Open Government v. Public Facilities Financing Authority of the City of San Diego - Only a party to a contract may bring a legal action under Government Code section 1092 to invalidate...more
The Tenth Circuit recently affirmed the Department of Labor’s authority to impose new conditions for exemption from prohibited transaction rules with respect to the sale of annuity contracts. The case related to the...more
Last month, we wrote about potential litigation issues under the “revised temporary” DOL Rule involving the offer and sale of annuities in the IRA market. This paper continues that discussion. I emphasize to the reader that...more
Previously, I wrote about potential litigation under the Department of Labor’s then proposed fiduciary rule (see Expect Focus, Vol. II, 2015). I predicted the following as to sales of index annuities to IRAs if the rule was...more
Fee Changes and Disclosures Post Conflict of Interest Regulations Initial Partial Effective Date - The effects of the U.S. Department of Labor’s (“DoL”) conflict of interest or fiduciary regulation and related prohibited...more
The DOL's "fiduciary advice rule" (the "Rule") will take effect on June 9, 2017. The DOL has published FAQs on the implementation of the Rule applicable to the period between June 9th and December 31st (the "Transition...more
This is an update on the upcoming effective date of the "fiduciary rule" or "fiduciary advice rule" (the "Rule") that was issued under the US Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). The Rule was published by...more
On April 4, 2017, the Department of Labor (DOL) released its final rule providing a 60-day delay of the April 10, 2017, applicability date of its conflict of interest regulation (the so-called fiduciary rule) and related...more
The Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued guidance on the Conflicts of Interest Rule it released earlier this year. The guidance, issued on October 27, 2016, is in the form of answers to frequently asked questions, which...more
This post continues our examination of the Department of Labor’s suite of final fiduciary and conflict of interest regulations. Our previous posts discussed the newly expanded definition of “investment advice fiduciary”; the...more
With this post, we begin our substantive explanation of the Department of Labor’s suite of final fiduciary and conflict of interest regulations. For the financial services industry, and for the retirement plans and IRAs,...more