It’s hard to believe that 2024 is well underway! That means it’s a perfect time to think about an issue that might get lost in the summertime and (dare I already say) year-end shuffles: fiduciary committees.

ERISA imposes fiduciary duties on those considered a fiduciary under an ERISA-covered plan. Generally, absent a delegation, the board

We recently summarized the regulatory back and forth of the past few years relating to environmental, social, and corporate governance (“ESG”) factors and their impact on ERISA retirement plans and the fiduciaries that oversee them. 

As expected, the Biden administration released a proposed rule last year that re-opened the door (previously closed by the Trump

For those with an eye on ERISA and its fiduciary rules, the past few years have caused whiplash when it comes to environmental, social, and corporate governance (“ESG”) investments in retirement plans.  With a new rule from the Department of Labor imminent, let’s review where we are, how we got here, and what’s next.

ERISA

A New York federal court recently held that a service provider for employer-sponsored retirement plans was not liable as a fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) when it used participant information to encourage certain plan participants to roll over assets into its more expensive managed account program.  Carfora v. Teachers Ins. Annuity

It started sometime last year and, in hindsight, was inevitable.  Clients with 401(k) plans and a crypto-savvy employee population began asking whether they could offer cryptocurrency as a plan investment option.  In the 401(k) world, where even a self-directed brokerage window with built-in investment limitations can be too risky, the answer seemed obvious – watch

Hot button ERISA fiduciary issues remain a focus for investment committees of 401(k) plans in 2022.  From “excessive” fee litigation – including litigation over the duty to monitor the fees charged by various mutual funds made available to plan participants (the U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed this duty in January 2022) – to the U.S. Department

With the end-of-the-year hustle already around the corner, now is a great time to dust off your company’s ERISA fiduciary liability policy to ensure your plan fiduciaries have robust, comprehensive coverage.  Fiduciary liability policies provide coverage for claims related to the administration and operation of retirement and health and welfare plans.  Unlike D&O coverage, fiduciary

In April, we posted about the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issuing cybersecurity guidance for employee retirement plans. That is, April 14, 2021. Shortly thereafter, the DOL updated its audit inquiries to include probing questions for plan fiduciaries about their compliance with “hot off the press” agency guidelines.

So, what

By now, plan fiduciaries and their service providers likely have heard about the DOL’s cybersecurity guidance. The Department of Labor’s stepping into cybersecurity in this way – a posting of best practices on the agency’s website – has left plan fiduciaries with some questions. Here are a few:

  • “When is this effective?”
  • “Does this