Compliance December 5, 2016

'Church Plan' Cases to Be Heard by Supreme Court

The cases for which petitions for writs of certiorari were granted include Dignity Health v. Rollins, Saint Peter’s Healthcare System v. Kaplan and Advocate Health Care Network v. Stapleton.
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The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review three cases in which federal appellate courts found health care institutions’ pension plans were not ‘church plans’ under the definition in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

The cases for which petitions for writs of certiorari were granted include Dignity Health v. Rollins, Saint Peter’s Healthcare System v. Kaplan and Advocate Health Care Network v. Stapleton.   

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Advocate and Saint Peter’s first petitioned the Supreme Court questioning whether ERISA’s church plan exemption applies so long as a pension plan is maintained by an otherwise qualifying church-affiliated organization, or whether the exemption applies only if, in addition, a church initially established the plan. Appellate courts in both cases found that the health care systems’ pension plans were not church plans under ERISA because they were not established by a church. 

In September, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed a court’s mandate that Dignity Health get its pension plan in compliance with ERISA until a decision is made on the health care provider’s petition for writ of certiorari of its lawsuit.

In granting the petitions, the Supreme Court said the cases are consolidated and a total of one hour is allotted for oral argument.
Deals & People December 5, 2016

LPL Financial Reveals Presidential Transition

The LPL board has appointed Dan Arnold, current LPL president, to be president and CEO effective upon current CEO Mark Casady’s retirement. 
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Investment advisory firm and independent broker/dealer LPL Financial LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of LPL Financial Holdings Inc., announced that Mark Casady will retire from his role as chief executive officer, effective January 3, 2017.

At the same time, the LPL board of directors has appointed Dan Arnold, current LPL president, to be president and CEO effective upon Casady’s retirement. Arnold will also join the board at that time, and Casady will continue as non-executive chair of the board of directors until March 3, 2017.

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Arnold has served as LPL president since March 2015 and has been responsible for driving the development of the firm’s long-term strategy. With LPL since 2007, he has more than 20 years of industry experience, having previously served as LPL’s chief financial officer and, before that, head of strategy and divisional president of LPL’s Institution Services business.

Jim Putnam, LPL’s lead director of the board, says the choice to go with Arnold as CEO coincides with the leadership team’s commitment to investing in the business, adding that the company will focus on “improving the adviser experience through technology, enhancing capabilities to support adviser growth, and driving operational efficiency” under Arnold’s leadership.

Arnold joined LPL through its acquisition of the UVEST broker/dealer—a provider of investment services to banks and credit unions—which he led as president and chief operating officer. As LPL chief financial officer, Arnold was responsible for formulating financial policy and ensuring the effectiveness of the organization’s financial functions. Most recently, he has led the firm’s focus on business development, existing adviser and institution growth, the client experience, research capabilities and sponsor partnerships.

Since joining LPL in 2002, he oversaw the firm’s transition from a primarily brokerage-based business to a significant provider in the retail investment advisory space.

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