After our recent Educational Series webinar on An ERISA Foundation: Laying the Groundwork for Successful Fiduciary Oversight, Chase Tweel, J.D., LL.M., a Pension Consultants ERISA Analyst responded to the questions the audience asked. There were so many great questions that we’ve broken the Q&A into two sections. Here’s “Part 2” of what he had to say.

Question: Can you give me some examples of what a settlor function is?

Chase:  A settlor function is one that is distinct from a fiduciary function. In other words, it’s a decision or a function that’s performed “above the plan,” and is not subject to fiduciary scrutiny because it’s a decision or an act that’s being made while the employer and the individuals who represent the employer are wearing their corporate hats. Some settler function examples include the decision to execute a merger, sell the company or acquire another company. Even though that decision is going to profoundly impact the retirement plan, the decision is still insulated from a business fiduciary standard.

So if a merger or acquisition has an incidental adverse impact to plan participants, plan participants would not be able to bring a cause of action against the employer or the plan sponsor for that merger or business transaction because the act was performed as a settlor, not as a fiduciary.

Other examples of settlor functions would be tweaking the design of the plan, removing certain benefits and features, adding a Roth feature and eliminating a match. As long as certain requirements are met because of their settlor functions, there’s not going to be fiduciary exposure for those actions.

Question:   How do I know if my trustee is directed or discretionary?

Chase:  This should be a relatively easy issue to determine. The first place to look is in the Read full article »

After our recent Educational Series webinar on An ERISA Foundation: Laying the Groundwork for Successful Fiduciary Oversight, Chase Tweel, J.D., LL.M., a Pension Consultants ERISA Analyst responded to the questions the audience asked. There were so many great questions that we’ve broken the Q&A into two sections. Here’s “Part 1” of what he had to say.

Question: From the webinar, I learned that employees’ benefits plan provided by the state, such as a state-funded community college, are exempt from ERISA. But what about the 403(b) plans that are offered as an alternative to the employees, do they have to follow the ERISA standards?

Chase:  That’s a good question, and the short answer is, no. The 403(b) plans that are sponsored by governmental employers are exempt from ERISA’s requirements. Some types of 403(b) plans are subject to ERISA. The determining factor in whether or not ERISA is going to apply to one of these special types of plans, such as a 403(b) plan, hinges on the status of the employer. Two types of employers can sponsor a 403(b) plan, governmental plans and certain private organizations that qualify as 501(c)(3)s, charitable organizations. The charitable organizations that are private and sponsor a 403(b) plan have a choice whether or not they want the plan to be subject to ERISA.

There is an ERISA safe harbor under the 403(b) rules that allow charities to exempt their plans from ERISA if they meet a certain set of requirements. If they don’t meet those requirements, then the plan will be subject to ERISA.

Going back to the original question, if it’s clearly determined that the employer is a governmental employer, you don’t even need to look at the ERISA safe harbor for 403(b) plans. All of the plans will be exempt from ERISA by virtue of the employer’s governmental status.

Question: How do I know who to be designated a named fiduciary? What kind of guidance can you provide on that?

Chase: Who should be the named fiduciary is a different question than from who is the named fiduciary. I’ll first address how you know who the named fiduciary is under the plan. The first place to look is the plan document. Most likely in the definitional section or in the plan administration section you’ll see the employer named as the named fiduciary. Now, that’s a pretty broad, not very helpful or specific provision if it’s just the employer name. The next place to look would be at board resolution to see who the employer, as a named fiduciary, has actually delegated specific responsibilities of plan administration.

The question “who should be the fiduciary in a plan?” is going to vary depending on the size and complexity of the plan and depending on the size and complexity of the employer. In a small plan sponsored by a relatively small employer, it may be sufficient to have a single individual who’s the benefits director or who has responsibility for human resource duties to be named as the plan administrator.

I always tend to think it’s a better idea to Read full article »