The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently asked a District of Columbia federal court judge to dismiss a lawsuit challenging its 401(k) cryptocurrency investment guidance. ForUsAll, a San Francisco-based 401(k) recordkeeping firm, sued the DOL in June 2022, claiming that the agency had changed policy in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), which requires a public notice and comment period. In Read More

A wave of recent court decisions is creating uncertainty about the obligations of religious employers and healthcare providers to offer or pay for the healthcare needs of gay and transgender individuals under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This litigation illustrates the conflicts between the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and policies that promote nondiscrimination under the ACA. Ongoing appeals and Read More

In Glenn Williams et al. v. City of Chicago, an Illinois federal district court judge has given the green light for some city employees to proceed with their suit against their employer based on violations of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). The employees also had brought claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, but Read More

The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the Federal Register concerning the classification of employees and independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). One of the main functions of FLSA is to outline the minimum wage and overtime requirements that apply to employees but not independent contractors. The proposed Read More

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued Part III Administrative, Procedural, and Miscellaneous, 26 CFR 601.602. This revenue procedure aims to outline inflation-adjusted items in various Internal Revenue Code (IRC) provisions for 2023. These adjustments apply to taxable years beginning in 2023. The revenue procedure notes a change that the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 made to the energy-efficient Read More

Retirement plan advisors are hopeful that Congress will work together before the end of the year to pass legislation collectively known as SECURE Act 2.0. This critical legislation would build on the provisions of the SECURE Act of 2019 and help workers better prepare for retirement. SECURE Act 2.0 consists of the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2022 that the House passed in March, as well as two bills that Read More

Patients have filed various lawsuits alleging their insurers violated the Parity Act by limiting treatment for mental health and substance use disorders. These lawsuits also involve ERISA claims. Many expect the outcomes of these lawsuits to clarify the standards for a successful parity claim and what remedies plaintiffs can seek under the Parity Act. The following are five parity cases that benefits attorneys and Read More

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a final rule that expands executive pay disclosure requirements for publicly traded U.S. companies, accompanied by a fact sheet summarizing the rule. The rule goes into effect for the 2023 proxy season or fiscal years ending on or after December 16, 2022. It implements requirements established by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Read More

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has upheld a permanent injunction prohibiting the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from requiring faith-based healthcare providers to perform or provide insurance coverage for abortions or gender-transition procedures. The case is Franciscan Alliance, Inc. v. Becerra, No. 21-11174 (5th Cir. 2022).  In this long-standing dispute over the Read More

Although high-profile racially charged incidents in recent years have led to a surge in corporate pledges and investments toward diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), the forward movement toward these goals has stalled. DEI leaders who have spearheaded this diversity work have focused on three key reasons why well-intentioned DEI initiatives have failed.  Failure to Explicitly Connect DEI Objectives to the Read More