On April 17, 2025, the Supreme Court decided Cunningham v. Cornell University, unanimously holding that a plaintiff can state a valid claim under ERISA by merely alleging that a plan used “plan assets” to pay a service...more
4/25/2025
/ 401k ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Cunningham v Cornell University ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
ERISA Litigation ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Retirement Plan ,
SCOTUS
On January 14, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) announced significant updates to the VFCP. These changes, effective March 17, 2025, introduce a self-correction feature for...more
1/23/2025
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EBSA ,
Employee Benefits ,
Excise Tax ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Final Rules ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Retirement Plan ,
Self-Correction Programs ,
Voluntary Fiduciary Compliance Program (VFCP)
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA) prohibits employer-sponsored group health plans from entering into agreements that contain so-called “gag clauses.” This prohibition generally restricts group health plans from...more
On February 23, 2022, Judge Jeremy Kernodle of the Eastern District of Texas ruled that certain parts of the Interim Final Rule Part II (the Rule) implementing the No Surprises Act (the Act) are invalid. Specifically, the...more
On December 30, 2021, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a temporary enforcement policy and guidance regarding group health plan service provider disclosures under section 408(b)(2) of the Employee Retirement Income...more
On Monday, November 15, President Joseph Biden signed the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (the Infrastructure Act). Although the legislation contains only a few tax provisions, one surprising change is...more
On February 26, 2021, the Department of Labor, the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service issued clarifying guidance regarding COVID-19-related deadline extensions under the Internal Revenue Code, ERISA, COBRA and...more
3/18/2021
/ COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disaster Aid ,
EBSA ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Time Extensions ,
U.S. Treasury
Update:
The Alert below discuses wellness rules proposed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act. Those proposed...more
3/1/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Biden Administration ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Incentives ,
Medical Examinations ,
Medical History ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Freeze ,
Voluntary Participation ,
Wellness Programs
On January 7, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued proposed wellness program rules. If the proposed rules become effective, they will significantly restrict the ability of employers to provide incentives...more
2/19/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Biden Administration ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Register ,
GINA ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Incentives ,
Medical Examinations ,
Regulatory Freeze ,
Risk Assessment ,
Voluntary Participation ,
Wellness Programs
On January 7, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued proposed wellness program rules that, if they become effective, will significantly restrict the ability of employers to provide incentives to participate...more
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 expands the service provider compensation disclosure rules to group health plans. Under Section 408(b)(2) of ERISA, any covered service provider that expects to receive at least...more
The CARES Act created a refundable “employee retention credit” as incentive for employers to retain their employees during the 2020 pandemic. Specifically, employers received a credit against their share of the Social...more
Certain deferred compensation plans and agreements maintained by publicly held corporations and subject to Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code may need to be amended before December 31, 2020, to reflect changes in the...more
On May 12, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released new COVID-19 guidance (Notice 2020-29 and Notice 2020-33), providing both temporary and permanent flexibility to Internal Revenue Code section 125 cafeteria...more
On April 29, 2020, the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), Department of Labor (DOL), Internal Revenue Service, and the Department of the Treasury (the Agencies) issued a final rule (Rule) regarding the...more
Eligible employers may take an immediate and refundable credit against the employer portion of their Social Security payroll tax equal to 50% of qualified wages. Below, we have summarized key information business owners need...more
A loan recipient under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) may be eligible for loan forgiveness on a portion of its PPP loan. Below, we have summarized key information business owners need in the form of Frequently Asked...more
Today, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) goes into effect, requiring employers with under 500 employees to provide emergency sick time and family leave pay to employees who cannot work or telework due to a...more
On Friday, March 27, President Trump signed into law an updated version of a congressional response to the COVID-19 pandemic, entitled the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “Act”). The Act includes...more
The current COVID-19 public health crisis raises important issues in connection with 401(k) retirement plans that plan sponsored need to consider carefully. Below, we have outlined some of the issues that might arise from the...more
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic raises many employee benefit and compensation considerations for employers. In this alert, we examine key issues relating to COVID-19 and provide suggested strategies for employers to...more
3/25/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disability Benefits ,
Disability Insurance ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Sick Leave Act ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Tax Credits
The joint press release on March 20, 2020 from the IRS and the DOL foreshadows several important pieces of guidance that the agencies intend to release this week. The following summarizes what the agencies intend to include...more
On December 20, 2019, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (“SECURE Act”) was signed into law. One important law change that is effective immediately is the increase in the minimum required...more
As the end of the year approaches, employers should be aware of important year-end deadlines and considerations related to their retirement and health and welfare plans. We have compiled a list of these deadlines and provide...more
Beginning February 1, 2017, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) stopped accepting applications for determination letters for individually designed plans, other than for new plans and terminating plans. This change in IRS...more