
Compliance
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Parties Reach Preliminary Settlement in 16-Year ERISA Lawsuit
Plaintiffs agree to settle for $267 million in a class action suit that alleged that PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP undercalculated lump-sum payments made to pension participants.
Time to Submit Plan Sponsor of the Year Nominations Is Running Out
Nominating a plan sponsor client is a great way to show appreciation
and highlight important best practices that are improving outcomes for defined
contribution and pension plan participants. Nominations for all types of
retirement plans will be considered, so don’t delay.
Foot Locker Fails in Cash Balance ‘Wear Away’ Litigation Appeal
Participants successfully challenged Foot Locker’s
determination of benefit accruals after the conversion of a traditional pension
plan into a cash balance arrangement.

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Bringing it All Together
The adviser’s role when working with a client’s multiple
retirement plans.
New Comparability Plans Popular Among Small, Professional Companies
They
allow the plan to give higher contributions to the owners.
Cash Balance Plan Solutions Aims to Help With Investment Decisions
Transamerica and Sage Advisory Services have teamed up on a solution to ensure that the investments meet the plan’s needs in helping prepare employees for retirement.
Cash Balance Plan Benefit Formulas to Be Examined
Generally, an IRS memo says, if the terms of the plan specifically allow the employer to vary the employee’s compensation used in the benefit formula, the plan would violate the definitely determinable rule.
Bank of America Prevails In ERISA Challenge After Bench Trial
An opinion handed down by The United States District Court for The Western District Of North Carolina, Charlotte Division, rules in favor of the defendant, Bank of America, which...

micro scope
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Data & Research
Data & Research
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Working With Professional Services Firms
Executives’ objectives outplay those of the rank and file
PLANSPONSOR Retirement Plan Sponsor of the Year Deadline Approaches
This is a friendly reminder that 2017 PLANSPONSOR Retirement Plan
Sponsor of the Year nomination forms are still available. Don't wait to nominate—time is running out!
National Cash Balance Research Denotes Impressive Growth
Kravitz released the 2016 National Cash Balance
Research Report, showing a 19% increase in the number of new cash balance
retirement plans and a rise in assets to $1 trillion.
DB Pension Buyout Market Maintains Impressive Pace
More plan sponsors than ever are looking to convert their
pensions to group annuities.
DOL Agrees Foot Locker Should Reform Cash Balance Plan
The agency filed a brief in a federal appellate court case about whether Foot Locker misled employees upon conversion from a traditional pension to a cash balance plan.
DB Clients Should Know About Proposed Accounting Changes
Comments are due to the FASB by April 26.

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Investing
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Don’t Leave Them Stranded
Helping highly compensated employees maximize their retirement saving
Final Market Rate of Return Rules Adopted for Hybrid Plans
The Internal Revenue Service is implementing new market rate
of return rules for hybrid pension plans.
A Peek at a Pre-Approved Cash Balance Plan Submission
James E. Turpin, with The Turpin Consulting Group, has one
concern with the submitted document he’s seen.
Managing Investment Risk in Cash Balance Plans
The features of cash balance plans that make them easier to understand and make costs more predictable also create opportunity for advisers with skill structuring DB investments.
Actuaries Expect Cash Balance Plans to Surge
Growth figures this year are in line with a previous Kravitz report that found the number of these plans surged 31% in 2013.
Number of Cash Balance Plans Surged 32% in 2013
They now comprise 28% of all defined benefit plans.