Plan Administration
The firm is continually advising clients with regard to plan administration. Since ERISA was passed in 1974, Congress has enacted additional legislation affecting employee benefit plans several times, including the Uruguay Rounds Agreement (GATT), the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996, the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 (collectively "GUST") and more recently the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 and the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003. In addition, the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor regularly issue volume of regulations, rulings, opinions and procedures. These complex laws and comprehensive regulatory guidance have placed an increasing demand on plan administrators to meet all applicable compliance requirements.
In particular, Vedder Price advises clients with regard to the fiduciary duties involved in plan administration. While somewhat foreign to ordinary business practice, the courts have required strict adherence to fiduciary duties, thus demanding careful planning and implementation in the course of plan administration. While many 401(k) plans provide for participant self-directed investments, plan fiduciaries may still need to adhere to certain procedures to avoid responsibility for such investments. The firm has also presented seminars dealing with the fiduciary responsibilities of plan sponsors.
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