Date Title
2008-09-05
Judge Turns Away Principal Revenue Sharing Case Class Action Bid

Faced with overseeing a class action lawsuit that could have represented as many as 57,000 401(k) plans at the Principal Financial Group, a federal judge in Iowa has refused to certify the plaintiffs as a class.

2008-09-02
Verizon Hit for Cash Balance Conversion Error

A federal judge said a Verizon benefits committee improperly handled an error in the plan document by ignoring it.
2008-08-25
IMHO: Irreconcilable Differences

Last week, the Department of Labor took another step toward finishing another piece of unfinished business.
2008-08-22
Appellate Panel Backs Staples Options Cutoff

The Staples office supply company has been cleared of wrongdoing in refusing to allow an ex-employee the right to exercise his stock options after he was fired for cause.
2008-08-21
EBSA Clarifies Investment Advice Regulations

Two proposed regulations released Thursday from the Department of Labor (DoL) include a model for advisers to satisfy the fee disclosure requirement for independent retirement account (IRA) and 401(k) investment advice.
2008-08-21
Court Upholds Cash Balance Plan Designs

In a continuing trend of federal court rulings backing cash balance plans, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled the plans do not discriminate against older workers in favor of their younger counterparts.
2008-08-20
State Street Sued over Mortgage-Backed Investments

A Massachusetts plumbing and air conditioning supply company sued State Street over allegations it misrepresented a bond fund ultimately invested in mortgage-backed securities as a low-risk 401(k) investment option.
2008-08-20
Putnam Begins Payouts for Market-Timing Settlement

Putnam Investment Management, LLC, will pay the first distribution of $40 million to compensate its mutual fund investors affected by undisclosed market timing and excessive short-term trading.
2008-08-15
GAO Finds Fiduciary Roles Fuzzy

The GAO says plan service providers—including advisers—should better disclose fiduciary and fee agreements.
2008-08-15
Wachovia Settles Auction-Rate Securities Charges

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said Wachovia agreed to a preliminary settlement of $9 billion.
2008-08-15
Court Dismisses Nationwide Countersuit

In a Nationwide case, a judge rules that fiduciaries can bring contribution and indemnification claims against co-fiduciaries under ERISA.
2008-08-15
New UBS Lawsuit Sprouts

JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley settled lawsuits Thursday, while UBS was slapped with another one from New Hampshire regulators.
2008-08-15
IRS Issues Corrections Program Update

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released an in-depth rewrite of its correction programs for retirement plan sponsors who have not complied with tax laws for a period of time.
2008-08-13
Citigroup to Pay Up in Smith Barney Gender Case

A federal judge today granted final approval to Citigroup Inc.'s $33 million settlement to resolve a gender bias lawsuit against its Smith Barney unit, Reuters reports.
2008-08-13
Fifth Third Slapped with Stock-Drop Lawsuit

Fifth Third Bancorp has joined the ranks of plan sponsors hit with a participant stock-drop lawsuit.
2008-08-08
The Bill Gets Bigger for UBS

UBS today announced a comprehensive settlement, in principle, for all clients holding auction-rate securities (ARS), for an estimated cost of $900 million.
2008-08-04
IMHO: No One To Blame

Like most of you, I have found the soaring price of gasoline to be enormously frustrating.

2008-08-01
Massachusetts Charges Merrill with Fraud over ARS Sales

The Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth has charged Merrill Lynch & Co. with fraud over charges it marketed auction-rate securities while not accurately disclosing the potential market risks.
2008-07-29
UBS Now Faces 401(k) Plan Investigation

Holzer Holzer & Fistel, LLC, is investigating possible violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) related to UBS AG's 401(k) plan.
2008-07-28
UBS Benches Fixed Income Head Amid Auction-Rate Probes

UBS reportedly suspended its head of fixed-income as state and federal investigations heated up into sales and marketing practices related to auction-rate securities by UBS and other Wall Street firms.
2008-07-28
IMHO: “Know” Way

Last week, the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) released its much-anticipated proposal regarding participant fee disclosures.