Publications: Benefits & Compensation

Late Health and Welfare Plan Enrollment Requests: Tax, ERISA, and Contractual Issues
Benefits Bullets, March 26, 2025
Addressing Retirement Plan Overpayments After SECURE 2.0
Benefits Bullets, February 2, 2025
Options for Asset Allocation Disclosure on a Defined Benefit Plan’s Annual Funding Notice
Benefits Bullets, February 14, 2025
Relaxed Rules for Furnishing Form 1095-C to Employees
Benefits Bullets, January 23, 2025
Protecting 401(k) Plans from Lawsuits Over Use of Forfeiture Funds
Benefits Bullets, September 18, 2024
Selecting an Automatic Rollover Vendor for a Qualified Pension Plan
Benefits Bullets, August 5, 2024
Out of the Fog
PlanSponsor, March - April 2024
Fiduciary Best Practices
PlanSponsor, Jan - Feb 2024
Catch as Catch Can
PlanSponsor, March - April 2024
Want to Offer a Dependent Care FSA to Employees? Some May Owe More Tax by Contributing
Benefits Bullets, July 3, 2024
Authorizing Activity with Respect to Employee Benefit Plans Based on a Power of Attorney
Benefits Bullets, April 17, 2024
Introduction to "Benefits Bullets"
Benefits Bullets, April 16, 2024
Abortion Coverage in ERISA Plans After Dobbs
IPB Benefits & Compensation Insider, July 7, 2022
Contracting Thoughts from the Unconflicted Employer Side
IPB Benefits & Compensation Insider, November 22, 2021
Retirement Account Planning Under the SECURE Act
IPB Tax, Trusts & Estates Newsletter, April 13, 2020
Benefits & Compensation Insider
January 29, 2020
Changes to Hardship Distribution Rules Take Full Effect in 2020
IPB Insider, January 28, 2020
IPB Alert: Notice 2019-09 and Section 4960
April 2, 2019
TCJA Alert: Unexpected Effect of Section 4960 Excise Tax
February 20, 2019
New Year's Resolutions for Benefit Professionals
Benefits & Compensation Insider, January 26, 2019
Affordable Care Act Update
Benefits and Compensation Alert, October 18, 2018
Employee Benefits Update
December 20, 2017
EB Update: Tax Reform
November 17, 2017
"The Case for Custom Target-Date Funds"
Columbia Threadneedle Investments, August 14, 2017
Employee Benefits Update: American Health Care Act
March 23, 2017
Employee Benefits Update: Health Savings Accounts
March 3, 2017
409A Failures: New Corrections Under Guidance and Case Law
Tax Notes, September 19, 2016
Employee Benefits Update
September 2, 2016
Employee Benefits in Focus: The DOL Fiduciary Rule
Employee Benefits Insider, June 7, 2016
Wellness Plans - EEOC Rules Remove Roadblocks But Narrow the Compliance Lanes Ahead
Employee Benefits Insider, May 25, 2016
Employee Benefits in Focus: Wellness Plans
Employee Benefits Insider, May 25, 2016
GRIST: 9th Circuit Decision Spotlights Importance of Accurate, Complete Pension Plan Records
Mercer Select GRIST Reports, May 19, 2016
Deploying Company Foundations in Battle for Tech Talent
The Tax Executive, April 6, 2016
GRIST Alert: Labor Department’s Broader "Fiduciary" Definition Will Take Effect April 10, 2017
Mercer Select, April 6, 2016
Employee Benefits Update
March 28, 2016
RJR Court Adopts Template Prudent Process for Terminating Employer Stock Funds
Employee Benefits Update, March 17, 2016
Fidelity Challenged for Keeping 'Float' Income in 401(k) Plans
Employee Benefits Update, March 17, 2016
IRS Reduces VCP Fees (Again); Encourages Plan Corrections
Employee Benefits Update, March 17, 2016
Recouping Overpayments: Lessons Learned from Recent Cases
Employee Benefits Update, March 17, 2016
Health Reform Resources
March 7, 2016
Employee Benefits Update
January 29, 2016
Affordable Care Act Delays, Changes
Employee Benefits Update, January 29, 2016
Court Takes Issue with EEOC Position on Wellness
Employee Benefits Update, January 29, 2016
Lessons from ERISA Fee Litigation: 2015 Year in Review
Employee Benefits Update, January 29, 2016
PBGC Premiums, IRS Mortality Tables Spur Additional De-Risking Activity by Plan Sponsors
Employee Benefits Update, January 29, 2016
Supreme Court Allows Plan's Forum Selection Clause to Stand
Employee Benefits Update, January 29, 2016
Hold It or Fold It: Keeping or Terminating the Employer Stock Fund After Dudenhoeffer and Tatum
BloombergBNA Pension & Benefits Daily, August 11, 2015
IRS Issues Guidance Regarding Credits and Refunds of Tax Withheld from International Payments
Employee Benefits Insider & Corporate Tax Insider, April 29, 2015
IRS Issues Guidance re Tax Withholding on International Payments
April 29, 2015
Responding to a Data Breach in Your Health Plan
Employee Benefits Insider, February 12, 2015
ACA Increases Exposure for Misclassifying Leased Employees
Employee Benefits Insider, October 23, 2014
The End of Circular 230 Disclaimers
Employee Benefits Insider, June 11, 2014
IRS Pilot Program for Section 409A Audits to Focus on Top 10 Highest Paid Employees
Employee Benefits Insider, May 13, 2014
Closed Pension Plans: Limited Nondiscrimination Testing Relief
Employee Benefits Insider, January 30, 2014
In-Plan Roth Rollovers
Employee Benefits Insider, January 30, 2014
Roundup of Recent IRS Qualified Plans Guidance
Employee Benefits Insider, January 30, 2014
Safe Harbor 401(k) Plans: More Mid-Year Flexibility
Employee Benefits Insider, January 30, 2014
Ivins Files Supreme Court Amicus Brief in Quality Stores Case
December 19, 2013
401(k) Investment Committee Topics
Employee Benefits Insider, November 19, 2013
New Field Attorney Advice Deductibility of Employee Bonuses
Employee Benefits Insider, November 8, 2013
Employee Benefits Law, Third Edition, Cumulative Supplement
Contributing Author, Bloomberg BNA, October 15, 2013
IRS Post-DOMA Guidance: What Employers Should Do Now
Employee Benefits Insider, September 16, 2013
IRS Post-DOMA Guidance: What Employers Should Do Now
September 16, 2013
Now What? Employee Benefits After DOMA
Employee Benefits Insider, July 2, 2013
Now What? Employee Benefits After DOMA
July 2, 2013
If the Supreme Court Rules Against DOMA: Ten Questions Employers Will Ask
Employee Benefits Insider, June 21, 2013
Rabbi Trusts May Need Amendment to Avoid Code Section 409A Trap
Employee Benefits Insider, May 24, 2013
Department of Labor's Lifetime Income Proposal
Employee Benefits Insider, May 8, 2013
New Taxes and Fees Under the Affordable Care Act - More Headaches for Employers
Employee Benefits Insider, April 5, 2013
New Taxes and Fees under the Affordable Care Act – More Headaches for Employers
April 5, 2013
IRS Updates EPCRS Corrections Program for Qualified Plans
Employee Benefits Insider, January 29, 2013
Qualified Retirement Plans
RIA Corporate Controller Manual, 2017
408(b)(2) Call to Action: Plan Fiduciary Obligations after the July 1, 2012 Deadline
Ivins, Phillips & Barker, July 6, 2012
The Fiduciary's Role in the Termination of Single Employer Defined Benefit Plans: A Practical Guide
PLANSPONSOR, June 26, 2012
Payback Time: Tax Treatment of Executive Compensation Clawbacks
Chapter 1C of New York University Review of Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation, October 11, 2011
409A Failures: Correcting With and Without the IRS Formal Correction Programs
46th Southern Federal Tax Institute, September 23, 2011
Cash Balance Plan Resource Page
January 13, 2011
Achieving Success in a Worker Classification Audit
Practical Tax Strategies, November 18, 2010
Taxing Clawbacks
Tax Notes, October 25, 2010
Employers Should Prepare Immediately for PPACA Early Retiree Reinsurance Program
Employee Benefits Insider, May 10, 2010
Notice 2010-38 Clarifies Tax Treatment of Employer-Provided Health Coverage for Adult Children
Employee Benefits Insider, April 28, 2010
VEBA Retiree Medical Reserves -- Two New Tax Reduction Strategies
April 21, 2010
Document Failures in the Section 409A-Covered Plan: Correcting With and Without Notice 2010-6
BNA Pension & Benefits Daily, April 12, 2010
Your Large-Employer Health Plan: Timeline for Compliance With Health Reform
April 1, 2010
PBGC Proposed Changes May Trigger Default Under Your Employer's Credit Agreements
Employee Benefits Insider, March 2, 2010
Code § 401(a)(17) Compensation Limit – Simplify 401(k) Plan Administration and Increase Permitted HCE Deferrals with a Simple Drafting Technique
February 28, 2010
409A Failures: Correcting Outside of the IRS's Formal Correction Programs
Presentation to the DC Bar Tax Section Employee Benefits Committee, February 24, 2010
401(k) Plan Nondiscrimination Testing Solution
February 1, 2010
COBRA Subsidy Extension: What Does This Mean for Employers?
Employee Benefits Insider, January 2010
409A Document Corrections Under Notice 2010-6
BNA Pension & Benefits Daily, January 8, 2010
Ten Things to Know About In-Service Retirement under PPA
October 21, 2009
Seventh Circuit's Contilli Decision Clarifies Requirements for Post-Retirement Actuarial Adjustments
September 14, 2009
401(k) Automatic Contribution Arrangement
September 9, 2009
Implementing a 401(k) Automatic Enrollment Arrangement
September 9, 2009
409A Failures: Correcting With and Without Notice 2008-113
Tax Notes, August 10, 2009
Summary of Pending Healthcare Legislation
Ivins, Phillips & Barker, August 2009
Fry v. Exelon: How Will the IRS React?
July 22, 2009
Benefits Outsourcing Contracts - Negotiate Carefully!
July 9, 2009
Accelerated Deductions for Self-Funded Medical Reimbursements – Even Faster than You May Have Believed
June 30, 2009
Accelerated Deductions for Self-Funded Medical IBNR Reimbursements – Even Faster than You May Have Believed
June 25, 2009
Second Circuit Victory for PBGC in Oneida Will Make Distress Terminations in Bankruptcy More Expensive
BNA Pension & Benefits Reporter, May 12, 2009
IRS Backloading Guidance Under Revenue Ruling 2008-7 -- Good and Not-So-Good News for Plan Sponsors
February 5, 2008
RSUs and Restricted Stock for Retirement-Eligible Employees -- Tax Surprises under Section 162(m)
January 30, 2008
Salary Continuation Arrangements: Still Viable But Proceed With Caution Under Final Code 409A and 415 Regulations
April 16, 2007
The W-2 Wage Limitation On the §199 Deduction: What W-2 wages and Who gets credit for them?
BNATAX Management, January 3, 2007
Pension Protection Act of 2006: Summary for DB Plans
September 1, 2006
Vesting of Deferred Compensation: When Words Are More Taxing Than Deeds
Tax Notes, February 6, 2006
Section 409A: Five Points That May Surprise You
January 1, 2006
Code Section 409A and the Hidden Deferred Compensation in Executive Employment Agreements
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 2005
EPCRS Update 2006
December 1, 2005
Year-End Benefits Checklist 2005
November 1, 2005
Internal Revenue Code Section 409A and the Hidden Deferred Compensation in Executive Employment Agreement
Benefits Law Journal, September 1, 2005
107 Tax Notes 1445 - American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 -- A Selective Analysis
2005 Tax Analysis Tax Notes, June 13, 2005
Cash Balance Plans & Age Discrimination: The Statute Speaks & (Most) Courts Listen
Benefits Law Journal, April 1, 2005
Roth Contributions - Proposed Regulations Issued
March 2, 2005
SERPs and Elective Deferral Plans Must Comply With §409A
Pension & Benefits Daily, February 10, 2005
Executive Employment Agreements Must Comply With Section 409A
Daily Tax Report, February 5, 2005
Alert: Change in "Dependent" Definition
December 8, 2004
The American Jobs Creation Act of 2004: An Analysis of Selected Provisions
November 1, 2004
Your Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans and the New Tax Law: What You Should Do Now - What Can Wait
Ivins, Phillips & Barker, October 22, 2004
Summary of New Law Affecting Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans
Ivins, Phillips & Barker, October 22, 2004
Limiting 401k Fiduciary Exposure After Enron: Put Your Prose to Work
Benefits Law Journal, Fall 2004
Retroactive Annuity Starting Date: What Do I Have To Do?
August 1, 2004
Proposed 411(d)(6) Regulations for Defined Benefit Plans: What To Do Right Now
July 1, 2004
Cash Balance Emergency Preparedness Kit: This Is Not A Test
Benefits Law Journal, April 1, 2004
Cash Balance Alert: February 10, 2004
January 10, 2004
Berger v. Xerox: Looking for Law in All the Wrong Places
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 2003
Cash Balance Alert: October 30, 2003
October 30, 2003
Accruing Benefits for Retired Ees: The Incredible Shrinking Ruling
Benefits Law Journal, October 1, 2003
VEBA UBIT Flash
July 1, 2003
Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003
June 19, 2003
Cash Balance Plans & ADEA: IRS Proposes Regs. Under Code section 411(b)(1)(H)
Benefits Law Journal, June 1, 2003
What's New in Novation? Discharging Deferred Compensation Obligations Upon Sale of a Business
Benefits Law Journal, April 1, 2003
Year-End Benefit Issues 2003
January 1, 2003
Three Rulings in Search of a Theory: Accelerated Deductions for 401k Plan Contributions
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 2002
Double Indemnity: Does Your Plan's Fiduciary Indemnification Clause Protect Your Plan Administrator?
Benefits Law Journal, October 1, 2002
Keeping Current with Qualified Plans
Employee Benefits Bulletin, September 10, 2002
Guilt by Association: The ERISA Fiduciary Status of Principals, Agents, Officers, Directors and Other Affiliates
Benefits Law Journal, July 1, 2002
Cash Balance Conversions under ADEA - Reconsidered & Reaffirmed
Benefits Law Journal, March 1, 2002
Settlements & Waivers Affecting Pension Benefits Under ERISA
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 2001
The ERISA Common Law and the Limits of Reticulation
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 2001
Flanigan v GE: Last Nail in the Coffin of the Asset "Sale" Bugbear?
Benefits Law Journal, October 1, 2001
Plan Expenses: Four Things About the Labor Department's Guidance We Still Don't Understand
Benefits Law Journal, October 1, 2001
Consistency Under the Claims Process: ERISA Duty or Regulatory Hobglobin?
Benefits Law Journal, July 1, 2001
From the Editors: Scrivener's Error--An Overdue Doctrine for Qualified Plan Corrections
Benefits Law Journal, May 1, 2001
Microsoft TAM--Answers Some Questions, Raises Others
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 2000
Benefits in Corporate Asset Sales: Guidance Takes Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
Benefits Law Journal, October 1, 2000
Do Cash Balance Plans Violate the ADEA?
Benefits Law Journal, August 1, 2000
Working Overtime to Deal With Evolving Benefits and Pay Practices
Benefits Law Journal, July 1, 2000
Is There a Scriveners Error Doctrine
Benefits Law Journal, May 1, 2000
Cash Bal. Plans: Are Wear-Away Transitions Legal under the ADEA
Benefits Law Journal, April 1, 2000
PensionCabal.com--Ruminations on the Cash Bal. Crisis
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 1999
Stand by Your Plan: Disqualification for Failure to Follow the Plan Terms after Shedco
Benefits Law Journal, August 1, 1999
Perspective--American Stores: IRS Wins Battle But May Have Lost War Against Accelerated Pension Deductions
Benefits Law Journal, August 1, 1999
Nontaxable Benefit Elections: Do They Trigger Taxable Income? More Confusion after Express Oil Change
Benefits Law Journal, April 1, 1999
Whither Guidance?
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 1998
The Ghost in the Machine: Does the All-Events Test Survive in Code Section 404?
Benefits Law Journal, December 1, 1998
Introduction and Hughes Blues
Benefits Law Journal, October 1, 1998
Hybrid Branches Face Stern Test
9 Int'l Tax Review 19, March 1, 1998
HIPAA's Nondiscrimination Rules: Agencies See Green Light for Regulating Plan Design
Benefits Law Journal, July 1, 1997
Overfunded Portion of Foreign Employees' Trust Treated as Grantor Trust
Journal of Taxation, January 1, 1997
Ensuring Deductions for Performance-Based Compensation in Excess of $1 Million
Journal of Taxation, January 1, 1996
Selected Developments Affecting Qualified Plans: Of Same Desks, Plan Spinoffs and Mergers, and Plan Procedures
New York University Conference on Employee Benefits Taxation, January 1, 1994
Stock Options Can Ease the Impact of the RRA '93 $1 Million compensation Cap
Journal of Taxation, January 1, 1994
State Withholding from Qualified Plan Distributions
Tax Management Compensation Planning Journal, April 2, 1993
New Final Regulations Offer More Flexibility in Defining Compensation
Journal of Taxation, January 1, 1993
Final Section 401(k) and (m) Regulations Contain Substantive Changes
Journal of Taxation, January 1, 1991
Cafeteria Plans: Recent Developments and Unresolved Issues
New York University Conference on Employee Benefits Taxation, January 1, 1991
5710. Nonqualified Deferred Compensation
Tax Practice Series, The Professional Expediter, BNA, September 17, 1990
5720. Golden Parachutes
Tax Practice Series, The Professional Expediter, BNA, February 26, 1990
Recent Developments Affecting Cafeteria Plans
New York University Conference on Employee Benefits Taxation, January 1, 1990
Minimum Coverage Prop. Regs. Contain Several New Tests
Journal of Taxation, January 1, 1989
The Employee Benefit Provisions of the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act
ALI-ABA Course Materials Journal, January 1, 1982

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