Finally, the Department of Labor has issued the final service provider fee disclosure regulation, otherwise known as the 408(b)(2) regulation. In addition to removing the “Interim” tag on the regulations, a few changes were made to the disclosure rules and the effective date for compliance was moved back to July 1, 2012. The following are some of the newest changes to what have been referred to as the “reasonable contract” regulations: Certain 403(b)s excluded from t... [More]

The recent stock market turmoil combined with our litigious society is generating concern on the part of many fiduciaries regarding their potential exposure. Taking a casual approach to plan governance, without a formalized Committee Charter, will not help insulate the company or the plan fiduciaries from participants' complaints or lawsuits. [More]

Join 401(k) Advisors and Groom Law Group, Chartered for a 45 minute educational webinar as we discuss these developments and highlight the important take-aways for plan fiduciaries. [More]

Equity markets bounced back over the fourth quarter, finishing on a strong note, but leaving mixed results for the year. For the quarter, U.S. equity markets posted a strong positive 12.0% return (DJW 5000 Index), while the International equity markets posted a smaller, but still positive, 2.9% return (MSCI EAFE). International markets continued to struggle amid underlying debt issues faced by many countries located in the Euro-zone. These issues have also led to greater volatility in the U.S ma... [More]

Veronica Lee, Senior Vice President of Client Services, was recently quoted in the article “Strategies to get nonnative speakers into retirement plans,” published in Business Insurance. The article explores proactive strategies to boost 401(k) plan participation of employees with English as a second language.    “A plan structure that includes automatic enrollment into a diversified portfolio and automatic increases (of amounts employees defer into their accounts) ... [More]

On October 20, 2011 the Internal Revenue Service announced cost of living adjustments affecting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement-related items for 2012. In general, many of the pension plan limitations will change for 2012 because the increase in the cost-of-living index met the statutory thresholds that trigger their adjustment. However, other limitations will remain unchanged. For more information about retirement plan limits, please contact your 401(k) Advis... [More]

Joel Shapiro, Senior Vice President, ERISA Compliance for 401(k) Advisors, was recently quoted in a CFO Magazine article regarding pending required plan fee disclosures and anticipated participant reactions thereto (“Lifting the Lid on 401(k) Plan Fees,” December 1, 2011).   “An enormous percentage of plan participants have no idea they’ve been paying fees all along, and many of them will be shocked,” predicts Shapiro.   Shapiro states that while mos... [More]