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One mandate under the PPACA [1] required health care providers, non-grandfathered health insurance issuers and self-insured group health plans to provide consumers with access to information about the cost of services before they receive care (“Transparency in Coverage” or “TiC”). During his first...

In the prior article we discussed the reasoning behind creation of a health and welfare committee to oversee administration of the health and welfare plans. In creating a charter, a plan sponsor will need to decide whether to include a work plan as an exhibit to that charter as a general guide to...

Following the flurry of regulatory guidance and informal comments from officials at the Employee Benefits Security Administration, and other agencies of the Federal government, health and welfare plans should be a primary focus for plan sponsors in the upcoming year. Designating a Committee or...

When crafting an individual estate plan, you should consider whether a Revocable Trust is right for you. Below is an analysis of an artificial fact pattern and the estate plan I would recommend based on that fact pattern. For a more concise and technical explanation of the benefits of a Revocable...

When creating trusts for estate-reduction purposes, nothing compares to the Intentionally Defective Grantor Trust. This type of trust is referred to by the acronym “IDGT.” Called by some as an I-D-G-T and others a word that rhymes with “digit,” the IDGT is an excellent tool for reducing the value of...

Account changes by a loved one are often done in secret, and direct evidence of undue influence is rarely available. In cases where manipulation has led to changes in a beneficiary designation that have caused you harm, the claim typically hinges on whether there was a confidential relationship...

The benefits of a Revocable Trust are three-fold. Firstly, assuming that the Revocable Trust is properly funded with all of a person’s assets, a Revocable Trust helps avoid a state’s probate procedure, which can be costly depending on the state’s specific procedure. Secondly, a Revocable Trust is an...

Most Florida residents are aware that Florida has a homestead exemption law, but there is more to it than one might think. There are actually three different sets of laws in Florida that deal with the homestead. One of those is the “save our homes” exemption. The save our homes exemption limits how...

For many clients, the inclusion of revocable and/or irrevocable trusts as part of their overall estate plan is an important feature. Revocable trusts can allow for probate avoidance and estate tax planning, whereas irrevocable trusts can be useful for leveraging the use of gift and estate tax...

A recent opinion from the 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals confirmed what should be settled law: deathbed gifts made by personal check delivered before death but deposited after death remain part of the donor’s taxable estate and thus subject to estate tax. A lot of taxes, legal fees, and headache...

This week we move away from the world of the standard retirement or health and welfare plans and into the world of executive compensation. Executive compensation arrangements provide a company with a highly flexible benefit to further attract and retain top talent. Issues in design and...

In the past two weeks, we have presented a few items that plan sponsors can review in hopes of curbing common employee benefits and executive compensation errors. This week in our Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) series, we touch on a small sample of common health and...

For better or for worse, the 401(k) plan has moved to center stage in the context of American retirement policy. Fittingly, Part 2 of this Employee Retirement Income Securities Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) driven series focuses on a handful of common misses that occur with 401(k) plans. Not Knowing the...

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) has a reputation for being intimidating and understandably so. Although plan sponsors must practically consider business needs and evaluate benefits alongside general labor and employment considerations, ERISA’s fiduciary standards may...