Benefit Controversies Archives - Page 14 of 31

Webcast: Fiduciary Issues and Data Privacy

by Anthony A. Bongiorno and Andrew Liazos | Mar 18, 2016 | Benefit Controversies, Employment, Privacy and Data Security

Webcast Details:
March 23, 2016
1:00 – 2:00 pm EDT / 12:00 – 1:00 pm CDT

McDermott Will & Emery invites you to a webcast to hear how employers and third-party administrators protect the privacy of employee participants’ personal information. On March 23, 2016, Ann Killilea and Andrew Liazos will discuss complex issues faced by employers and the impact on employee benefit plan sponsors, and address the following topics related to managing data breaches:

Beyond HIPAA: Privacy and data security issues relevant to ERISA fiduciaries
Security threats to benefit plans
Fiduciary duties to protect regulated personal information

Ann Killilea is counsel in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery LLP and brings to the Firm and to its Global Privacy and Data Protection Affinity Group more than 25 years of experience as senior in-house corporate counsel advising Hewlett-Packard Company (HP), and its predecessor companies Compaq Computer Corporation and Digital Equipment Corporation, all multinational companies in the information technology industry.

Andrew C. Liazos is a partner in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery LLP and regularly represents Fortune 500 companies, public companies, large closely held businesses and compensation committees on all aspects of executive compensation; ERISA fiduciary and compensation plan governance; employee benefits in business transactions; initial public offerings and bankruptcy; international compensation planning and related litigation matters. He also counsels executives in employment agreement and joint-venture negotiations.

CLE credit for the live presentation of this program is pending in the states of California, Illinois, New York and Texas. A Uniform Certificate of Attendance will be made available to participants requesting CLE credit in all other states. Please be advised that CLE credit will not be approved for on-demand/recorded viewings of this program in the states listed above. Attendees seeking credit in other states should consult their state CLE accrediting agency to determine whether self-study credit can be earned for on demand/recorded viewing of this program.

SEC Proposal on New Pay versus Performance Disclosure Rules

by Andrew Liazos | Mar 9, 2016 | Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Employment, Executive Compensation

On April 29, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), by a three-to-two vote, proposed new rules that would prescribe new mandatory pay-versus-performance disclosure. The proposed rule would include specific information showing the relationship between executive compensation ‘‘actually paid’’ and financial performance of the registrant.

Click to read the full article from Pension & Benefits Daily.

Review our full presentation SEC Proposal on New Pay versus Performance Disclosure Rules here.

‘Right-Sizing’ Full-Time Employees to Reduce ACA Obligations May Lead to ERISA Class Action Exposure

by Wilber H. Boies, PC | Feb 24, 2016 | Benefit Controversies, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans

Compliance with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has resulted in increased health benefit costs for many employers. A recent court decision demonstrates that while programs to reduce the number of full-time employees may lower health care costs in the short run, they also may lead to ERISA class action litigation. In Marin v. Dave and Buster’s, a federal district judge in the Southern District of New York denied a motion to dismiss a class action lawsuit claiming that the Dave and Buster’s amusement chain violated ERISA by cutting employee hours to avoid providing health care benefits to a class of employees.

Read the full article.

Flambeau Inc. Wellness Program Testing Falls Within ADA Safe Harbor

by McDermott Will & Emery | Jan 19, 2016 | Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

On December 30, 2015, a federal judge in the Western District of Wisconsin ruled in favor of Flambeau, Inc. and against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in holding that Flambeau’s medical exams as part of its wellness program and self-insured medical plan did not violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Read the full article.

Final Regulations on Affordable Care Act Market Reforms

by Megan Mardy | Dec 29, 2015 | Benefit Controversies, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans

The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and the Treasury have issued final regulations on market reform requirements under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) including grandfathered health plans, preexisting condition exclusions, lifetime and annual dollar limits on benefits, rescissions, coverage of dependent children to age 26, internal claims and appeals and external review processes, and patient protections.

Read the full article.

Employers Need 2015 Year-End Planning to Meet Employee Reporting and Withholding Requirements

by McDermott Will & Emery and Joseph K. Urwitz | Dec 17, 2015 | Benefit Controversies, Employment, Executive Compensation

To avoid tax reporting and withholding penalties as 2015 draws to a close, employers need to properly plan and check their reporting for employees under non-qualified deferred compensation, fringe benefits, health benefits or other remuneration. Year-end planning for employers is important, because employee information reporting, including both Form W-2 and the new Affordable Care Act (ACA) Forms, is now subject to significantly increased penalties.

Read the full article.

Corporate Acquisitions and Employment Verification Issues

by Joan-Elisse Carpentier | Dec 15, 2015 | Benefit Controversies, Employment

Under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), all employers are required to complete an Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9 on the first day of employment for all hired employees. While most employers are aware of this requirement, unique Form I-9 issues arise in corporate acquisitions.

Read the full article.

DOL’s New Disability Claim Rules Add to a Plan Administrator’s Duties under Welfare and Retirement Benefit Plans

by McDermott Will & Emery | Nov 30, 2015 | Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Labor, Retirement Plans

Now, faced with an aging baby-boomer generation and increased costs related to disability litigation, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefit Security Administration (DOL) has proposed new rules that would revise and strengthen the current rules for claims adjudication of disability claims under welfare and retirement plans.

Read the full article.

Will You Marry Me? The Future of Benefits for Same-Sex Spouses and Partners

by Brian Tiemann | Nov 24, 2015 | Benefit Controversies, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

The United States Supreme Court’s recent landmark rulings on same-sex marriage have significantly changed employers’ options and obligations with respect to benefit coverage for employees’ same-sex spouses and partners. Until recently, some employers voluntarily extended benefits to same-sex partners in recognition of the fact that same-sex couples had limited ability to marry. However, now that same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states and recognized under federal law, employers must extend certain spousal benefits to same-sex spouses and can do so without additional administrative complexity. In addition, some employers are phasing out unmarried partner benefits by requiring partners to marry in order to be eligible for spousal benefit coverage.

Click to read the full article from Pension & Benefits Daily.

New Legislation Extends Future Form 5500 and 990 Deadlines, Affects Veterans Health Benefits and Extends Excess Pension Asset Transfer Rules

by Jeffrey Holdvogt and Sarah L. Engle | Oct 30, 2015 | Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

The recently enacted Surface Transportation and Veterans Health Care Choice Improvement Act of 2015 includes provisions that will extend the deadlines for filing future Form 5500 and Form 990 series information returns. In addition, the legislation modifies rules relating to the ability of veterans to participate in health savings accounts (HSAs), allows employers to disregard employees receiving certain veterans benefits when determining whether they are subject to the shared responsibility requirements of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and further extends the ability of employers to use excess pension assets to pay for retiree health and group-term life insurance.

Read the full article.

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