A New York federal judge seemed skeptical that a former Amazon worker could sufficiently show that he was fired for whistleblowing on allegedly discriminatory COVID-19 policies. U.S. District Judge Rachel P. Kovner said that the ex-employee's seemingly deficient pleadings and his workplace conduct could undermine his case. In Smalls et al. v. Amazon Inc., a 2021 case filed in the U.S. District Court for the Read More
DOL Releases Statistics on ERISA Benefit Plan Enforcement for (FY) 2021
The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), part of the Department of Labor (“DOL”), is an agency that enforces Title I of ERISA. At the end of 2021, EBSA released a fact sheet summarizing its fiscal year (FY) 2021 enforcement statistics. In 2021, EBSA restored Over $2.4 billion to employee benefit plans, participants, and beneficiaries. The total monetary recoveries included $499.5 million in benefits Read More
Five Key Government Contracting Policies Of 2021
Government contractors were affected by many policy changes in 2021. A vaccine mandate that applies to nearly every federal contractor employee across the country, and a planned False Claims Act crackdown on cybersecurity, are among the most impactful changes. Here is a look at five areas of government contracting policy that agencies have changed or scrutinized in the latter half of 2021. Broad Vaccine Read More
IRS Issues Notice Regarding 2021 Required Amendments List for Individually Designed Qualified and Section 403(b) Plans
The Required Amendments List (the “List” or “RAL”) is an annual list of changes in retirement plan qualification requirements (see Revenue Procedure 2016-37). It also establishes amendment deadlines for individually designed plans. Generally, the Required Amendments List will include an item after the issuance of any guidance for the item, including any model amendment. However, the IRS has the discretion to Read More
IRS Proposes Permanent, Automatic 30-Day Extension for Furnishing ACA Forms
The IRS recently issued proposed rules that would make permanent and automatic the 30-day extension for furnishing reporting forms for the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) to individuals. The IRS has also stated that the proposed relief is available for 2021 reporting. This should provide some relief for those Applicable Large Employers (“ALEs”) and health plan providers nervously preparing for the looming January 31, Read More
New Jersey Law on Vicarious Liability Protects Employers
The New Jersey Legislature has opened a two-year window for filing previously time-barred civil lawsuits based on allegations of sexual abuse. The legislature’s action has created an intense interest in New Jersey legal standards for vicarious liability. The primary significance of the new filing window for sexual abuse litigants in New Jersey relates to the law that determines the liability of employers for the Read More
What Plan Documents Must You Surrender if You Are Sued Under ERISA?
When a retirement plan participant files a lawsuit to recover damages from harm due to the plan sponsor’s alleged breach of fiduciary duty, employers and plan administrators must furnish certain plan documents on demand. While the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) requires the production of relevant materials, employers and plan administrators are not required to undertake any extensive searches Read More
Northwestern ERISA Case Highlights Compliance Lessons
By Philip Koehler and Anne Hall (January 20, 2022) Litigation against Employee Retirement Income Security Act retirement and health plan sponsors and administrators has plagued workplace fiduciaries for the last two decades. Then, in 2020, ERISA lawsuits reached unprecedented levels and affected fiduciaries of ERISA retirement and health plans nationwide. Unwary 401(k) and 403(b) plan sponsors, fiduciaries and Read More
CEO’s Termination Referred to Arbitration
In early December 2021, a Pennsylvania federal judge referred a dispute over the termination of a biopharmaceutical and former medical cannabis company’s ex-CEO, Raza Bokhari, to arbitration in Canada. In July 2021, the company, FSD Pharma Inc.(“FSD”), announced that its board of directors had terminated Bokhari for cause. A special committee and international law firm claimed the company’s then CEO had engaged in Read More
The Department of Labor’s Reversal on ESG for ERISA Plan Fiduciary Investment Decision-making
There are many emerging issues for fiduciaries of 401(k) and 403(b) plans. These issues include the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) regulation of ERISA investment duties and ESG considerations, as well as its recently re-proposed rule regarding the same. Compared to the prior rule enacted by the Trump administration at the end of 2020, the latest proposal represents a significant shift in the DOL’s attitude towards ESG Read More
