If your business offers a 401(k) or another retirement plan, you have taken on a legal responsibility along with the employee benefit: retirement plans are regulated by the high standards of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). One piece...

The playbook for ERISA lawsuits is undergoing a major rewrite. Moving past standard fights over high fees and poor fund performance, plaintiffs’ lawyers are now targeting the underlying machinery of plan administration—from actuarial formulas and forfeiture distribution to day-to-day operations....

Not paying attention to why a cyber breach occurred paves the path for the next cyber breach. That’s why it’s essential for retirement plan sponsors to follow up with service providers after even a minor incident. Examining the cause is...

When a participant’s 401(k) account is compromised, the aftermath is rarely straightforward. It’s bad enough that breaches target retirement funds, but they also expose sensitive personally identifiable information (PII)—like Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and home addresses—opening the door...

When you sponsor an ERISA-regulated retirement plan, it's easy to get buried in compliance details and litigation risk management — and lose sight of what actually matters: making sound decisions and monitoring results. Here's a closer look at what that...

What every small business owner sponsoring a retirement plan needs to know about personal risk If you run a small business and sponsor a 401(k) for your employees, you may assume that your modest plan size keeps you under the...

Compiled with guidance from accountants, attorneys, and ERISA compliance experts If you sponsor a workplace retirement plan — a 401(k), profit-sharing plan, or similar arrangement — you carry one of the most consequential legal obligations in employment law. Embedded within...

When you sponsor a calendar-year retirement plan, July brings more than just summer barbecues—it brings the high-stakes responsibility of filing Form 5500 by the July 31 deadline. While most plan sponsors rely on third-party administrators (TPAs) to prepare this report,...

When you sponsor a retirement plan (like a 401k), you are trusted to safeguard the life savings of employees. That’s why a federal law, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) specifically requires you (and anyone handling plan funds) to...

When you sponsor a retirement plan for employees, such as a 401k, you exercise discretion whenever you make decisions about the plan’s management. That’s why, under the Employee Retirement Income and Security Act, you are considered a fiduciary, and can...