On January 31, 2022, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the lower court’s finding that surcharges imposed by the Pension Protection Act (“PPA”) are excluded from the determination of an employer’s “highest contribution rate” for...more
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (“PBGC”) issued a final rule on January 7, 2021 that impacts the calculation of withdrawal liability by multiemployer pension plans in endangered or critical status. The final rule...more
People are flawed, except for saints and Popes. One of my many flaws is that I enjoy being right. I love predicting things and being right (such as the end of revenue sharing, and a former employer going out of business...more
When I was at college, I was very involved politically. Someone I met my freshman year at Stony Brook and a friend to this day was someone I met through these political circles and has made a name for himself as a state party...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has established a process that requires all retirement plan sponsor who have adopted a pre-approved retirement plan to restate their plans once every six years to reflect changes in the...more
The SECURE Act—the most impactful retirement plan legislation since the Pension Protection Act of 2006—was included in the bipartisan spending bill signed by US President Donald Trump on December 20, 2019. The SECURE Act will...more
The Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) issued final regulations, effective September 23, 2019 (the “Final Regulations”), that modify the hardship distribution rules for plans established under Section 401(k) of the Internal...more
On Thursday May 23rd, the House of Representatives passed the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (the “SECURE” Act) with a near unanimous vote. Billed as an attempt to encourage retirement...more
Earlier this month, the IRS proposed changes to existing rules governing distributions from 401(k) and 403(b) plans on account of certain financial hardships. The proposed regulations reflect several statutory changes enacted...more
Section 402(f) of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) requires plan sponsors to give written explanations of tax implications to recipients of qualified retirement plan distributions eligible for rollover treatment, often...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: While an employer can bargain to impasse and exit a critical status multiemployer pension fund, under the Pension Protection Act it cannot bargain to impasse and implement a proposal that would have it...more
Most American adults are concerned that they will not be able to retire or will outlive their retirement income. In fact, research shows that Americans are not saving enough for retirement. This retirement crisis is, in part,...more
Retirement plan vendors sponsoring defined contribution plan documents approved by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have begun issuing packages containing the new IRS-approved version of those documents—reflecting the...more
Overview - The 1939 movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington tells the story of a proverbial "do gooder" (played by James Stewart) who goes to Washington as the junior senator from his state, hoping to make important changes...more