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Nevin Adams

Once again, a prudent process has won the day in court for retirement plan fiduciaries.   In the case at hand, plaintiff Bonnie Birse, a participant in the CenturyLink Dollars & Sense 401(k) Plan since 2012, and invested in the plan’s 2015 Target Date Fund, argued that CenturyLink’s... READ MORE
California’s auto-IRA program for private sector workers has prevailed against claims that it runs afoul of ERISA’s preemption. The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California in 2018 by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, Jonathan Coupal and Debra Desrosiers... READ MORE
There are few things more annoying in my daily existence than those ubiquitous pop-up service agreement acknowledgements.   I say annoying because they are inevitably long and “lawyerly”; there’s no way that they can readily be read (much less absorbed) in the medium in which they are presented;... READ MORE
There may be a whole new focus emerging with regard to excessive fee litigation.   Last week a reader shared with us an “Excessive Fee Questionnaire Regarding Defined Contribution Plans.” This document was reportedly presented to a plan sponsor of a $170 million plan—from its property and... READ MORE
Roth 401(k)s are more prevalent—and popular—than ever. But is that good—or bad—for retirement?   A recent op-ed[i] in The Wall Street Journal explored the potential implications—“What ‘Rothifying’ 401(k)s Would Mean for Retirees”— (subscription required), though the focus is on tax policy as well... READ MORE
In a unanimous ruling, the nation’s highest court says you don’t need more than a dictionary to know the meaning of “actual knowledge” when it comes to participant awareness regarding 401(k) disclosures.   ‘Tell’ Tale   The decision came in a case involving Intel’s 401(k), its decision to... READ MORE
Could lifetime income disclosures undermine retirement savings?   Over the past several years, a growing amount of attention has been focused on the decumulations of defined contribution plan balances in retirement – and a sense that the emphasis on account growth, and account balances, glosses... READ MORE
A federal appellate court has adopted the fiduciary test established in another circuit – but has it come to a different conclusion?   The Eighth Circuit disagreed (Rozo v. Principal Life Ins. Co., 8th Cir., No. 18-3310, 2/3/20) with the district court’s granting of summary judgment in favor of... READ MORE
“Presumably, if workers earned income in a retirement account, it is safe to assume that they had a retirement account…”.   Ya think?   That somewhat self-evident statement is drawn from a recent Issue Brief by the non-partisan Employee Benefit Institute (EBRI). That it was necessary is a... READ MORE
A large money manager and recordkeeper is pushing back on allegations of self-dealing with regard to the investments and administration of its own 401(k) plan. This time it’s Prudential’s $8 billion plan (and approximately 45,000 participants as of 2018) who were sued last November by former... READ MORE
Are employers necessary for a successful retirement system? A new proposal suggests that their role be “jettisoned.”   Not one to simply “bash” the 401(k), and to his credit, Morningstar’s John Rekenthaler, who recently opined that the 401(k) had outlived its usefulness,[i] now offers an... READ MORE
That’s the premise behind a recent column by Morningstar’s John Rekenthaler, who writes that “the plans are as good as they can be under the current framework – and that's not good enough.”   I had the pleasure of meeting John a number of years back – and I’ve been keeping up with his writing... READ MORE
Think the last multibillion-dollar 401(k) plan had been sued? Guess again.   The latest to find itself served with a suit is health technology firm Cerner Corp., whose $2 billion plan has been accused of the assortment of fiduciary miscues typical of this case genre.   Specifically, four... READ MORE
A new excessive fee suit makes some of the same claims, but relies on different arguments, turning not only to government filings, but also making very precise arguments about plan expenses and portfolio diversification. This most recent suit (Fleming v. Rollins, Inc., N.D. Ga., No. 1:19-cv-05732... READ MORE
Those who had hoped for some clarity – or perhaps a shift – in the standards involving where, and how, to draw the line between the obligations of corporate officials and ERISA plan fiduciaries – will have to wait a little longer.  It’s an issue that the U.S. Supreme Court had taken on when agreed... READ MORE
The Plan Sponsor Council of America recently released its 62nd Annual Survey of Profit-Sharing and 401(k) Plans, documenting a record high rate of savings, alongside an uptick in Roth contributions and other trends. However, sometimes the things that don’t change can be just as telling… Target-... READ MORE
A year ago, the average 401(k) balance went into 2019 with a bit of a hangover. This year the hangover could be for a different reason.  It’s easy to forget that in December 2018, the markets were so rough that the average 401(k) account balance for younger (25-34), less tenured (1-4 years)... READ MORE
It is something of a tradition this time of year to look back, to reminisce about past events and lessons learned, and sometimes to look ahead – and who am I to buck that trend? Here’s a look back – and some “things” that I hope will help lay the groundwork for a productive and prosperous 2020 for... READ MORE
A few years back — well, now it’s quite a few years back — when my kids still believed in the reality of Santa Claus, we discovered an ingenious website that purported to offer a real-time assessment of their “naughty or nice” status. Now, as Christmas approached, it was not uncommon for us to... READ MORE
Earlier this year, I commented that it would be interesting to see how expanded access to hardship withdrawals might impact that activity. Now we have some answers. There’s more than a little irony in a legislative body that has long bemoaned both the paucity of retirement savings and the... READ MORE

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