Brian Tiemann
Subscribe to Brian Tiemann's PostsBrian J. Tiemann counsels public and private companies on a broad range of employee benefit matters, including matters related to pension plans, 401(k) plans and executive and incentive compensation. He advises plan fiduciaries with respect to their fiduciary duties, investment policies and alternative investments. He also advises multinational clients on global employee benefits matters, particularly with respect to global incentive compensation plans. Brian has extensive experience negotiating investment management agreements and service provider agreements. Read Brian Tiemann's full bio.
Just Catching Up? Wages, by Any Other Name, Not So Sweet for Employers Under SECURE 2.0
By Sarah L. Engle and Brian Tiemann on Jun 30, 2023
Posted In Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans, SECURE 2.0 Act
Retirement plans often apply (and in some cases are required to use) multiple definitions of wages or compensation for various plan purposes. Given this complexity, failures to follow a plan’s definition of compensation are one of the most common issues experienced by retirement plan sponsors. Unfortunately, as drafted, the SECURE 2.0 Act only adds to...
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Just Catching Up? All for One, or None for All, Catch-Up Contributions Under SECURE 2.0
By Sarah L. Engle and Brian Tiemann on Jun 28, 2023
Posted In Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans, SECURE 2.0 Act
Beginning after December 31, 2023, the SECURE 2.0 Act indicates that any plan that permits catch-up contributions must require certain employees to make their catch-up contributions on a Roth basis. Employers have expressed significant concerns regarding their ability to implement the necessary system changes—specifically to payroll and recordkeeping systems—by year-end. In response, employers have begun...
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Just Catching Up? SECURE 2.0 Roth Catch-Up Contribution Requirement Leaves More Questions than Answers
By Sarah L. Engle and Brian Tiemann on Jun 26, 2023
Posted In Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans, SECURE 2.0 Act
Beginning after December 31, 2023, the SECURE 2.0 Act indicates that any plan that permits catch-up contributions must require certain employees—i.e., those whose wages from their employer exceed $145,000 in the prior calendar year—to make their catch-up contributions on a Roth basis. This change raises a host of questions about how the rule is intended...
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Proposed Legislation Would Allow 403(b) Plans to Invest in Lower-Cost Collective Investment Trusts
By Todd Solomon, Brian Tiemann and Dan O’Neil on Jun 14, 2023
Posted In Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans, SECURE 2.0 Act
A new bill introduced in Congress would allow 403(b) plans maintained by tax-exempt organizations to make use of collective investment trust (CIT) investments. CITs are an alternative to mutual funds that may provide significant cost savings for 403(b) plans and their participants. The SECURE 2.0 Act took the first steps along this path by making...
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Webinar Replay: What to Know About SECURE 2.0
By Sarah L. Engle, Jeffrey Holdvogt, Andrew Liazos, Lisa Loesel, Jacob Mattinson and Brian Tiemann on Feb 1, 2023
Posted In Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans, SECURE 2.0 Act
What do retirement plan professionals and participants need to know about the recently passed SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022? In this webinar replay, McDermott’s Employee Benefits team discusses the many changes to retirement plans and individual retirement accounts, including the key changes for 401(k), 403(b) and defined benefit plans as well as other changes impacting...
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JOIN US: SECURE 2.0 Takes Second Bite at Retirement Security
By Sarah L. Engle, Jeffrey Holdvogt, Andrew Liazos, Lisa Loesel, Jacob Mattinson and Brian Tiemann on Jan 24, 2023
Posted In Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans, SECURE 2.0 Act
Join partners from McDermott’s Employee Benefits team on Wednesday, January 25, 2023, as they discuss the impact of the recently passed SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022. With over 90 changes to retirement plans and individual retirement accounts (IRAs), this webinar will highlight the key changes for 401(k) and 403(b) plans and defined benefit plans, as...
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When Are Cryptocurrencies Appropriate Investments for Retirement Plans and IRAs?
By Brian Tiemann and McDermott Will & Emery on Jun 7, 2022
Posted In Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Privacy and Data Security, Retirement Plans
The US Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued guidance for the first time on the investment of retirement plan assets in cryptocurrencies. Compliance Assistance Release No. 2022-01 cautions 401(k) plan fiduciaries to “exercise extreme care” before allowing participants to invest plan assets in cryptocurrencies because cryptocurrencies “present significant risks and challenges to participants’ retirement accounts,...
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Cryptocurrency for Employee Benefits Lawyers: What You Need to Know
By Andrew Liazos and Brian Tiemann on Apr 14, 2022
Posted In Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
As the popularity of cryptocurrency continues to grow, what do employee benefits lawyers need to know about this emerging investment option? McDermott Partners Andrew Liazos, Andrea Kramer and Brian Tiemann recently offered their perspectives about cryptocurrencies and how they relate to Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) plans, individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and...
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Cryptocurrency for Employee Benefits Lawyers: What You Need to Know
By Andrew Liazos and Brian Tiemann on Feb 3, 2022
Posted In Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
As cryptocurrencies gain popularity, employers are considering how they can be used as part of compensation arrangements and benefit plans to attract and retain talent. McDermott Partners Andrew Liazos, Andrea Kramer and Brian Tiemann recently offered their perspectives about cryptocurrency, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) taxation guidance of convertible virtual currencies and other cryptocurrency-related compensation issues...
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Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Investing for Retirement Plans: Where We’ve Been, and Where We Are Now
By Brian Tiemann on Dec 23, 2021
Posted In Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
Over the past year, the regulatory backdrop around environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing has shifted. As McDermott Partner Brian J. Tiemann explains in these slides, the US Department of Labor (DOL) under the Trump administration dropped ESG terminology and set a high standard for considering factors other than purely financial projections for investment alternatives....
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