Campbell Joins Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

 

Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP hired Bradford P. Campbell, former assistant secretary of Labor of the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), as counsel in its Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Practice Group in Washington, D.C.   

 

 

Campbell joins the firm from Schiff Hardin LLP, where he focused on ERISA Title I issues, including fiduciary conduct and representation of financial service providers.

In his work as assistant secretary, Campbell was ERISA’s primary regulatory and enforcement official, playing a key role in every significant ERISA retirement and health reform of the prior decade. Under his leadership, EBSA first proposed the recently finalized 408(b)(2) service provider disclosure and plan participant disclosure regulations addressing the transparency of 401(k) and other retirement plan fees. Campbell also issued the final QDIA regulation facilitating automatic enrollment of workers in their retirement plans, and a final regulation expanding participant access to professional investment advice. 

Never miss a story — sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters to keep up on the latest retirement plan adviser news.

Earlier in his government service, Campbell assisted in developing and negotiating the Pension Protection Act of 2006, including provisions modernizing the prohibited transaction rules.  

In 2011, Campbell was listed as one of the 100 Most Influential People in Defined Contribution by 401kWire.

Campbell earned his law degree, cum laude,from the Georgetown University Law Center, and his bachelor’s degree from Harvard University.

 

Investors in Target-Date Funds Feel More Secure About Retirement

Workplace retirement plan investors who use target-date funds feel more secure about reaching their retirement goals and managing their portfolios than those who do not. 

According to a study from ING U.S., 71% of target-date investors indicated that target-date funds made them feel more confident that they were making sound investment decisions.

When asked about various features available in target-date funds, all respondents showed a strong preference for those that are managed by multiple investment managers and are able to provide a guaranteed income stream at retirement. More than nine in 10 (93%) target-date investors and nearly three-quarters (71%) of those who do not use them would want a target-date fund that provides stronger protection against market losses in the years leading up to and including retirement. Additionally, eight in 10 (80%) respondents using target-date funds and two-thirds (66%) of those not using them would prefer less market risk at that stage of the investment cycle.

Want the latest retirement plan adviser news and insights? Sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters.

“These findings suggest that diversified, age-adjusted target-date funds, when effectively designed, may work better than traditional offerings in bridging the gap between investor knowledge and long-term retirement objectives,” said Paul Zemsky, chief investment officer of multi-asset strategies for ING Investment Management.

Other key findings of the study include:

•  Eighty-eight percent of target-date investors have interest in a target-date fund that offers guaranteed income at retirement;

•  Eighty-six percent of target-date investors feel confident they know the definition of “diversification” compared to a smaller number (71%) of those who do not use target-date funds; and

•  Sixty-one percent of target-date investors prefer multi-manager strategies, while a much smaller number (14%) prefer a single- manager.

 

The survey findings are from an online survey conducted by Synovate on September 19 and 20, 2011. Respondents were 540 active defined contribution plan participants (212 invested in target-date funds while 328 did not) between the ages of 25 and 69 and were the primary/joint financial decision maker for their account. 

To view a report containing detailed findings of this study, visit the ING Retirement Research Institute.

«