Providing sophisticated legal advice on the design, operation and maintenance of retirement and pension plans.
Tax-qualified retirement and pension plans present a minefield of complex tax and legal requirements for employers. Our attorneys are seasoned in navigating these issues, and provide clients with sophisticated legal advice on the design, operation and maintenance of a broad range of plans.
We advise clients on the legal and compliance issues concerning a wide range of retirement and pension plans, including 401(k) plans, profit-sharing plans, money purchase plans, defined benefit pension plans, and union and multiple employer pension plans. We also regularly provide advice on such highly technical matters as non-discrimination testing and compliance, qualified separate lines of business (“QSLOBs”), top-heavy requirements, prohibited transactions and multi-employer pension plan withdrawal liability.
In addition, we are highly skilled in the complex art of drafting plan documentation, including plan documents, amendments, restatements and summary plan descriptions; qualified domestic relations order (“QDRO”) procedures; participant loan procedures, and investment policy statements. We also assist clients in abandoned plans, plan mergers and plan terminations, and we have extensive experience with IRS and Department of Labor filings and correction programs, such as IRS determination requests, the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (“EPCRS”), the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (“VFCP”) and the Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program (“DFVCP”).
In addition, our attorneys are heavily involved in mergers and acquisitions and other transactions, from identifying potentially costly fiduciary and compliance issues in the due diligence process, through the post-transaction integration of plans.
