Tag: Fiduciary

DOL takes another swing at redefining investment fiduciaries Read more »

The ERISA world focused much energy and attention on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Hughes v. Northwestern University, in which the Court reinstated a fiduciary suit against Northwestern University. In the aftermath of the Court’s decision, many analysts concluded that the decision would make life even more difficult for plan fiduciaries seeking to fend […] Read more »

Fiduciaries responsible to exercise prudence in all decisions—not just some. Read more »

Plaintiffs’ must use truly comparable benchmarks in claiming imprudent fiduciary decisions. Read more »

Recent guidance from the DOL illustrates the outgoing administration’s desire to leave its mark. Read more »

New DOL guidance would provide advisors with incentives to sell commissionable products. Read more »

The U.S. Department of Labor has issued new proposed regulations that provide guidance on the process that plan fiduciaries should use in selecting ESG investments. In issuing the proposed regulations the DOL targets ESG funds and creates new requirements–and hurdles-to the use of such funds. Read more »

A number of long-term market trends are creating significant pressure on bundled recordkeepers’ revenues. The recordkeepers are responding to these revenue pressures through a variety of ways that impose additional costs on plans and participants. Read more »

The battle over the appropriate standard of conduct for financial advisers rages on. One of the most important distinctions in this battle is the difference between the responsibilities of an investment adviser and a broker. And yet, the current focus on the differences between advisers and brokers is missing a huge gap – consumers do not understand the niceties of this broker vs adviser difference and the confusion created by these rules is costing consumers billions of dollars per year. Read more »

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal reported that Wells Fargo bank was under investigation for practices in the bank’s retirement division. According to the article the investigation focuses on practices intended to move clients into more expensive individual retirement accounts when they retire or leave their jobs. The article also noted that the […] Read more »

On March 15 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit struck down the DOL’s new fiduciary rule. This adds yet more uncertainty and confusion to a regulatory, legal and political tale that already has more than its share of … uncertainty and confusion. This blog post tries to make some sense of what […] Read more »

A new chapter may be opening in the ongoing saga of litigation against plan fiduciaries. This new chapter could lead plan sponsors and advisors to rethink – and expand – their view of the scope of their fiduciary responsibility. On January 10, the plaintiffs in the lawsuit against New York University’s plans filed an amended […] Read more »

The Department of Labor recently filed a lawsuit against Macy’s department store (Acosta v. Macy’s, Inc., S.D. Ohio, No. 1:17-cv-00541, complaint filed 8/16/17). The lawsuit has received some attention among benefits professionals; but this attention has focused on one aspect of the DOL complaint – claims that the tobacco surcharge imposed under the Macy’s health […] Read more »