Section Newsletters

Articles on Employee Benefits

Pending cases By David R. Shannon Employee Benefits, June 2011 Recent cases of interest to employee benefits practitioners.
Employee benefits in a multi-generational workplace By Michelle Capezza Corporate Law Departments, December 2010 Thoughtful planning will enable any company to motivate and reward its diverse workforce with valuable benefits that will keep the workers happy and the company’s productivity goals on target.
Federal caselaw update Employee Benefits, December 2010 Recently decided federal cases that affect employee benefits practitioners.
Federal caselaw update Employee Benefits, September 2010 Recent federal cases of interest to Employee Benefits practitioners.
Interim final regulations issued for health plans for internal claims, appeals, and external review By Jeremy M. Pelphrey Employee Benefits, September 2010 The terms of the interim final regulations will begin to take effect on September 23, 2010.
The continuing expansion of the Public Safety Employee Benefits Act By Carlos S. Arévalo Local Government Law, June 2010 The Legislature’s failure to specify its intentions will lead to further disputes between cash-strapped local governments struggling to meet the rising costs of operations and disabled safety employees trying to meet and keep up with increasing health care costs.
Employee Benefits update By Bernard G. Peter Corporate Law Departments, June 2010 Recent developments relating to employee benefits.
ERISA withdrawal liability—The labor dispute exemption By Douglas A. Darch Employee Benefits, June 2010 What happens if an employer ceases making payments to its multi-employer pension plan because its employees are on strike?
Federal caselaw update Employee Benefits, June 2010 Recent cases relating to Employee Benefits.
DOL: Office of the Solicitor Employee Benefits, March 2010 The Office of the Solicitor of the United State Department of Labor has filed amicus briefs in several pending cases.
ESOPs By Corey Rosen Employee Benefits, March 2010 By providing employers with incentives to make these well-above-normal contributions to ESOPs, Congress has provided a system in which ESOP participants do demonstrably better than their peers, as do ESOP companies.
Illinois: Funding Public Pension Employee Benefits, March 2010 How does Illinois' state retirement system compare to those of other states?
Multiemployer withdrawal liability: Understanding the basics By Keith R. McMurdy Employee Benefits, March 2010 A general summary of many of the basic concepts impacting an employer in a withdrawal scenario. Because each withdrawal is factually specific to the employer and the fund involved, it cannot be assumed that all concepts apply in every situation. However, these basics help explain how withdrawal liability works.
2010 limits for benefit plans Employee Benefits, December 2009 Retirement plans, published by IRS
Executive bonuses By Douglas A. Darch Employee Benefits, December 2009 When an executive leaves her position midway through the performance measurement period for an annual bonus, is she entitled to a pro-rata share of the annual bonus?
Federal caselaw update By David R. Shannon Employee Benefits, December 2009 The DOL has filed amicus briefs in the following cases.
Taxation of employment-related settlement payments By Elizabeth Erickson & Ira B. Mirsky Employee Benefits, December 2009 In an internal memorandum dated October 22, 2008, but released only in July of this year, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Office of Chief Counsel has outlined information necessary to determine the correct tax treatment of employment-related settlement payments. 
ESOPs Employee Benefits, September 2009
Federal caselaw update Employee Benefits, September 2009 Recent cases of interest to employee benefits attorneys.
Privacy: Social Security numbers Employee Benefits, September 2009 ERISA has a little-known privacy provision in Section 106(b) which restricts the disclosure of certain information about participants.
401(k) Fiduciary Duties: Continuum of Ambiguities By Melissa Caldwell Employee Benefits, June 2009 401(k) revenue sharing and plan fiduciary duty litigation is becoming a complex area of law. With an increasing number of claims alleging breach of fiduciary duties and fee disclosure, employers and plan sponsors are looking for direction in this confusing area of ERISA law.
Federal caselaw update Employee Benefits, June 2009 Recent cases of interest to employee benefits attorneys.
Discharge for misconduct cuts off temporary total disability benefits By Michael R. Lied Labor and Employment Law, May 2009 A summary of the case of Interstate Scaffolding, Inc. v. The Workers’ Compensation Commission, et al.
Abandoned retirement plans By Douglas A. Darch Employee Benefits, March 2009 As the recession has worsened, many employers are simply closing their doors and walking away from their obligations. The frequent result of a “walk-away” is that the benefit plan is abandoned. An abandoned Plan loosely defined is a plan which no longer has a “responsible” plan sponsor or plan administrator.
Hardship distributions from 401(k) plans By Markus May Business and Securities Law, March 2009 A look at when employees are allowed to make hardship withdrawals from their existing 401(k) plans.
Patient Advocacy: A new benefit to aid in healthcare navigation By Laura L. Pautz Employee Benefits, March 2009 It does not take a specialty in employee benefits to realize the healthcare system can be difficult to navigate. A new profession known as health advocacy is forming to aid the population and to advocate access to healthcare.
Review of Critical: What We Can Do About The Health-Care Crisis by Tom Daschle By Mark J. Warshawsky Employee Benefits, March 2009 In his book, Critical, published in 2008, Tom Daschle, former Senate majority leader, describes his views on the problems of the U.S. health care system and how they can be fixed.
Maxit, Inc. v. Van Cleve: Supreme Court clarifies the need for express approval by Workers’ Compensation Commission of any attempt to settle or waive employee rights and benefits By Richard L. Turner, Jr. Civil Practice and Procedure, January 2009 Any attempt to waive or compromise rights needs to be explicit and should definitively refer to the rights accruing to the particular party under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act.
Two new laws require employers to extend health benefits By Jim McGrath Corporate Law Departments, January 2009 Recently President Bush signed Michelle’s Law, prohibiting health insurance companies from terminating coverage for dependent college students who are forced to leave school due to a medical condition or serious injury.
Clearing the smoke surrounding non-smoking wellness programs: the limits to premium incentives By Derek A. Schryer Employee Benefits, December 2008 Employers are increasingly implementing wellness programs to help minimize their soaring health care costs.

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