Overview The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) on December 15, 2020 issued a release (the “Release”) finalizing Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption (“PTCE”) 2020-2 (the “Final Exemption”) for retirement accounts...more
1/20/2021
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Biden Administration ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Regulation BI ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Retirement Plan ,
Rollover Equity
The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) on June 29, 2020 issued a release (the “Release”) proposing an important new initiative for retirement accounts (“Plans”) that are subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security...more
7/20/2020
/ 1975 Rule ,
Banks ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Brokers ,
Comment Period ,
Covered Transactions ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Exemptions ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Five-Part Test ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
New Guidance ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retirement Plan ,
Rollover Equity
In Dorman v. Charles Schwab Corp., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held on August 20, 2019 that claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) can generally be subject to mandatory...more
9/11/2019
/ 401k ,
American Express v Italian Colors Restaurant ,
Arbitration ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Class Action ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Field Assistance Bulletins ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Putative Class Actions
The U.S. Department of Labor’s amended “investment advice” fiduciary rule need no longer ask for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee. So - ding dong, the rule is dead....more
Fiduciary rule, we hardly knew ya. The death knell for the DOL’s amended rule appears to be sounding this week with the expected mandate from the Fifth Circuit effectuating the vacatur of the amended rule in the case of...more
5/9/2018
/ Amended Rules ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Chamber of Commerce ,
Collateralized Loan Obligations ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Investment Adviser ,
Retirement Plan ,
Risk Retention ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Vacated
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on March 15, 2018 issued an opinion (Opinion) vacating the Department of Labor (DOL) fiduciary rule and related applicable exemptions. The DOL had promulgated the rule and...more
4/18/2018
/ Appeals ,
Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mutual Funds ,
Petition For Rehearing ,
Retirement Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Vacated
It has been a long and winding road for the amended fiduciary regulation (the "Regulation") and the related new and amended exemptions (collectively, the "Rule") of the U.S. Department of Labor (the "DOL") under the Employee...more
3/26/2018
/ Appeals ,
Arbitrary and Capricious ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Investment Adviser ,
Lack of Authority ,
Retirement Funds ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trump Administration ,
Vacated
The U.S. Department of Labor on April 6, 2016 released the final version of its “investment advice” regulation and accompanying prohibited transaction exemptions (collectively, the “Final Rule”), a highly-anticipated...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) today (August 9, 2017) submitted a Notice of Administrative Action in the Thrivent v. Acosta litigation (D. Minn.). The Notice relates to the final regulation that defines who is a...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) published in the Federal Register on July 6, 2017 a Request for Information (the “RFI”) regarding the final regulation defining who is a “fiduciary” of an employee benefit plan as a...more
7/8/2017
/ Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Investment Adviser ,
IRS ,
Mutual Funds ,
Presidential Memorandum ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Public Comment ,
Request For Information ,
Rollbacks ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trump Administration
It has been a long and winding road for the amended fiduciary regulation (the "Regulation") of the U.S. Department of Labor (the "DOL") under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA"). The highly...more
5/30/2017
/ Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Delays ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Enforcement ,
Exemptions ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Field Assistance Bulletins ,
Final Rules ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Obama Administration ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Retirement Plan ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Trump Administration
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a final rule on April 7, 2017 (Final Extension),1 delaying for 60 days the applicability date of the new rule defining who is a fiduciary under ERISA (Fiduciary Rule)2 and related...more
The controversial new fiduciary regulation of the U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”), together with related new and amended “prohibited transaction” exemptions (collectively, the “Rule”), had been scheduled to become...more
At the end of last week, on March 10, 2017, the U.S. Department of Labor (the "DOL") issued Field Assistance Bulletin 2017-01 (the "FAB"). The FAB relates to the DOL's proposal, which was published in the Federal Register on...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) released two additional sets of FAQs on January 13, 2017 regarding the new “investment advice” regulation and related exemptions (the “Rule”) under the fiduciary provisions of the...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued in April 2016 the final version of its controversial “investment advice” regulation and various related exemptions (collectively, Final Rules), which are widely expected to have a...more
11/18/2016
/ Annuities ,
Asset Management ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compensation Agreements ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Retirement Plan
The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) released its first set of FAQs (the “FAQs”) regarding the DOL’s recently finalized “investment advice” regulation and various related exemptions (collectively, the “Final Rules”) on...more
11/8/2016
/ Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Compensation Agreements ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Exceptions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Final Rules ,
Insurance Industry ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Prohibited Transactions
Mutual fund sales and distribution arrangements are once again under review. It has been reported that fund intermediaries are re-examining their practices relating to sales charges, share class structures and product...more
10/26/2016
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Intermediaries ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Mutual Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Service Charges
The Department of Labor (DOL) has issued the final version of its “investment advice” regulation (Final Rule), which is widely expected to impact significantly the financial services industry, including registered investment...more
8/30/2016
/ 401k ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Distribution Rules ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Adviser ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Mutual Funds ,
Registered Investment Companies (RICs)
This OnPoint focuses on the new and amended fiduciary investment advice regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and accompanying prohibited transaction exemptions (Final Rules), from the perspective of...more
8/30/2016
/ Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Exemptions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Adviser ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Retirement Plan