06.06.17

Avoid Litigation with Attention to Common ‘Red Flags’
James Quaid

Any size retirement plan can run into serious trouble when sponsors are not careful. With some planning, however, a qualified retirement plan can avoid ERISA litigation. This article reviews some of the most common red flags leading to litigation and reminds plan sponsors of the importance of regularly reviewing fees and expenses.

05.05.17

Helping Soon-to-Be Retirees Understand RMD Rules
James Pellino

Employees who are approaching retirement age may be unaware of their required minimum distribution (RMD) obligations, which begin at age 70½ for both individual IRAs and 401(k)s. This article summarizes what they need to know for financial and tax-planning purposes.

04.04.17

Be Prepared for Your Next — or First — QDRO

In the settlement of divorce cases, it is frequent to have the courts order that a portion of one spouse’s pension benefits be assigned to the other (soon to be former) spouse. However, it is up to the plan sponsor or administrator to determine whether the order qualifies as a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO). This article discusses common errors that plan sponsors encounter when qualifying a domestic relations order and how to handle the rejection of an order.

03.07.17

Fiduciary Duties: Reviewing & Benchmarking Plan Fees

Are the services a plan receives reasonably priced? Knowing the answer is a vital fiduciary duty. ERISA expects more from plan fiduciaries than simply shopping around for plan providers offering rock bottom rates. This article summarizes some key areas all fiduciaries must consider when benchmarking costs of their qualified retirement plan. A sidebar discusses a report that suggests ways employers can help current plan participants ease into retirement.

02.07.17

Understand Your Target-Date Fund Series

Target-date or lifecycle funds first came to market in 1994. Since then, they have experienced much growth with nearly every large financial institution today offering their own version of these funds. Along with target-date funds becoming a fundamental option of 401(k) plans, comes a fiduciary responsibility to monitor and evaluate them, much like other plan investments. This article examines key characteristics plan sponsors and investment committees should know about target-date funds.

01.03.17

Do You Know Where All of Your Plan Participants Are?

It is not uncommon for previously active employed plan participants to fall off the radar screen. They include retirees and former employees that move away without informing the plan administrator. Before anyone realizes it, they become “lost” participants. This article details the steps to take when dealing with these participants.

12.06.16

Auto-Escalation Should be Offered in Conjunction with Auto-Enrollment
Stephanie Zaleski-Braatz

Auto-enrolling 401(k) plan participants without also incorporating an auto-escalation feature might be a counterproductive exercise. Survey data suggests that average 401(k) plan deferral rates have been trending downward even though more employers are adopting auto-enrollment. The apparent culprit: low auto-deferral rates. This brief article highlights how to use both auto-enrollment and auto-escalation clauses to help benefit employees.

11.07.16

Let’s Play Ball! It’s Time to Step Up to the Plate to Review Fiduciary Status and Fiduciary Duties
James Quaid

Are you a fiduciary for your company or organization’s retirement plan? If yes, you may find it challenging to “cover all the bases” in understanding your fiduciary duties. Some common duties that get overlooked include failing to identify the plan’s fiduciaries and insufficiently training fiduciaries on their responsibilities.

10.05.16

IRS Eases Pain for Correcting Certain Plan Administration Errors
James Pellino

We all know that nobody is perfect. The good news is, so does the IRS. The IRS acknowledges that retirement plan administrators are not infallible, and provides correction for certain administrative errors. While corrective actions can still be arduous and time consuming, the IRS has relaxed some of its rules. This article provides an in-depth look at the recent updates as to how the IRS will handle certain plan administration errors.

09.06.16

Is a Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan Right for Your Company?

Nonqualified deferred compensation plans enable key employees to defer a higher proportion of their current income to later years when they retire. While nonqualified plans often are perceived as only for top executives, they may also be right for upper-level staff. This article discusses what plan sponsors need to know about nonqualified deferred compensation plans.