January 21, 2021
In this episode of the Proskauer Benefits Brief, partner Robert Projansky and special guest Garrett Fenton, senior attorney at Microsoft Corporation, discuss cyber theft of 401(k) plan accounts. Tune in as we discuss why 401(k) plans are vulnerable to cyber security breaches, what kinds of cyber security frauds we are seeing in 401(k) plans, evolving litigation on these issues and steps plan sponsors can take to mitigate risk.
February 28, 2020
For a number of ERISA, tax and other regulatory reasons, it may be desirable for the manager or sponsor of an investment fund or other structure to utilize what is often referred to as a plan asset "hard-wired" conduit feeder. Tune in to this podcast as partner Ira Bogner and senior counsel Adam Scoll discuss more about these structures, and the advantages they can provide.
December 17, 2019
In this episode of the Proskauer Benefits Brief, partner Ira Bogner and senior counsel Adam Scoll discuss VCOC "Management Rights." For VCOC compliance purposes, "management rights" are contractual rights directly between an investing entity and an operating company by which the investing entity can substantially participate in, or substantially influence the conduct of, the management of the operating company. Unfortunately, there is not a ton of guidance out there explaining what constitutes sufficient VCOC "management rights," so make sure to tune in to this podcast to hear our views.
October 23, 2019
In this episode of the Proskauer Benefits Brief, partner Ira Bogner and senior counsel Adam Scoll discuss when and how an ERISA plan fiduciary may consider “ESG factors,” (i.e., environmental, social and governance factors) when investing ERISA plan assets. As these circumstances are fairly limited, we advise ERISA plan fiduciaries to proceed with caution in this regard. Tune in for more important information in this episode.
October 2, 2019
In this episode of the Proskauer Benefits Brief, partner Ira Bogner and senior counsel Adam Scoll discuss ERISA’s bonding requirements. ERISA’s bonding rules generally require that every fiduciary of an ERISA-covered employee benefit plan and every person who handles funds or other property of such a plan be bonded. We will break down these bonding rules and their importance, so be sure to tune in to this episode.
August 7, 2019
Over a year after the CA Supreme Court set new standards for worker classification in its Dynamex ruling, employers with workers in California are faced with often conflicting information about this decision’s practical impact. In this episode of The Proskauer Benefits Brief, Kate Napalkova, special employee benefits and executive compensation counsel, and associate Pietro Deserio discuss Dynamex and its broader meaning for employers and other stakeholders, both in the compliance and transaction arenas.
July 15, 2019
In this episode of The Proskauer Benefits Brief, our final installment in the series exploring the basic COBRA rules, partner Paul Hamburger is joined by associate Katrina McCann and they discuss the penalties for noncompliance. Employers and plan administrators often ask what types of penalties they are exposed to if they get it wrong. What is the cost in correcting the COBRA error? We discuss these important issues so be sure to tune in.
July 15, 2019
In this episode of The Proskauer Benefits Brief, our series on the COBRA basics rolls on. Partner Paul Hamburger is joined by associate Talya Scolnik and they discuss some of the key COBRA considerations for some of the nontraditional health plan related programs such as Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) and Health Wellness Programs, Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs).
July 15, 2019
In this episode of The Proskauer Benefits Brief, partner Paul Hamburger and associate Tyler Forni highlight some of the key COBRA rules to keep in mind in Mergers and Acquisition context. Most people understand that in any M&A interaction, COBRA rules need to be addressed, so be sure to tune in to the next episode in this COBRA series.
July 15, 2019
In this episode of The Proskauer Benefits Brief, our series outlining the basic COBRA rules continues. Partner Paul Hamburger and associate Talya Scolnik highlight some of the key COBRA rules to keep in mind in understand how long COBRA coverage lasts. This can be a complicated and very technical issue, so be sure to tune in.