The DOL has not appealed the decision in the Florida Federal District Court that vacated its fiduciary “re-interpretation.” That re-interpretation, in effect, said that ongoing investment advice to a rollover IRA could be...more
On December 18, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) published in the Federal Register a final prohibited transaction class exemption (the “Exemption”) that allows “investment advice” fiduciaries to provide advice...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
On June 29, 2020, the Department of Labor (DOL) proposed a series of regulatory actions regarding the definition of “investment advice” under ERISA section 3(21). The proposed actions result from the Fifth Circuit’s decision...more
On June 29, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) proposed a new exemption from the prohibited transaction provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) in connection with the...more
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (“DOL”) issued a third installment of new Q&As regarding the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“the Act”) on March 28, 2020. Foley’s Coronavirus Task Force...more
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
It’s official. The Department of Labor’s controversial, Obama-era Fiduciary Rule is dead and gone. On June 21, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued its mandate certifying its March 15 split decision...more
In June, we circulated our fifth article on the continuing saga regarding the standard of conduct for sales of securities and annuities — and the efforts of federal and state regulators to impose new conditions on the...more
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals’ rejection of the DOL’s Fiduciary rule reintroduces the 1975 five-factor fiduciary test and creates uncertainty for plan sponsors, plan fiduciaries and investment advisors. After years of...more
On June 21, 2018, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a mandate vacating the controversial fiduciary rule issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) in 2016. The mandate follows the court’s opinion issued on March 15,...more
In a move that should shock no one, the Department of Labor (DOL) pretty much left the fiduciary rule to die by rolling over and effectively letting the rule die. The last deadline for resuscitating the fiduciary rule passed...more
After nearly a decade in the making, the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule appears to be officially dead. On June 21st, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued its mandate that finalized its earlier...more
For several years now we’ve been keeping you updated on the long and winding road of the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) Fiduciary Rule....more
On June 21, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued its order, or mandate, putting into effect its earlier decision to vacate the Department of Labor’s (DOL) conflict of interest regulation (the fiduciary...more
The Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) conflict of interest rule, informally coined the “fiduciary rule,” sparked much debate when the regulations were proposed in 2015, and finalized in 2016, to expand the definition of fiduciary...more
The issue over the Fiduciary Rule, and whether it will be implemented, revised, vacated, forgotten, etc. has been ongoing. In March 2018, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of several business groups who...more
During the past two years, we have written about potential litigation arising under the Department of Labor’s, first proposed, then adopted fiduciary rule. In the first of those articles, when the Rule was initially proposed,...more
On May 31 and June 1, several teams competed over proposed revisions to the Suitability in Annuity Transactions Model Regulation (#275) (Suitability Model) at the in-person meeting of the National Association of Insurance...more
Every employer offering a 401(k) plan is faced with decisions about what investment options to make available to participants. Investment options carry different risks as well as different costs. In designing available...more
The Fifth Circuit’s March decision vacating the Fiduciary Rule appears likely to stand. On May 22, 2018, the Fifth Circuit denied motions by the States of California, New York and Oregon to reconsider a denial of their prior...more
Much has happened since we last reported on the Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule. The compliance deadline was extended 18 months to July 1, 2019. A federal appellate court vacated the Fiduciary Rule in its entirety. The...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission published three proposed rules with request for public comment that would seek to enhance and clarify the standards of care applicable to broker-dealers and investment advisers when...more
On April 18, concurrently with its publication for comment of a proposed set of enhanced investment adviser regulations, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published a separate proposal related to the conduct...more
On March 15, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit struck down the Department of Labor’s (DOL) fiduciary duty rule in a 2-1 decision. While the court has denied motions filed by, among others, the...more