Understanding Employee Benefits and key developments in the employee benefits field and items of interest to our clients. MORE

Retirement Plans

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Verizon Communications, Inc. sponsored a number of plans for its foreign employees. These employees were citizens of foreign countries who never worked in the United States. Because these employees never worked or resided in the United States, their employment income and the benefits from their retirement plans were foreign source income not subject to U. …

If an employer withdraws from a multiemployer plan and is assessed withdrawal liability, all members of the employer’s controlled group are liable for that assessment. The controlled group rules look at the extent of common ownership among various trades or businesses, whether or not incorporated. The determination of controlled group status can be complicated and …

I previously blogged on a case where a purchaser who did not try to assume withdrawal liability in a purchase transaction learned that it could nevertheless be responsible for that liability as a successor employer. In another recent case, a seller who tried to structure a transaction so that the buyer assumed the withdrawal liability …

Employers who participate in multiemployer pension funds know that if they withdraw from those funds they may be required to pay withdrawal liability if the plan is underfunded. Employers who sell their assets to an unrelated buyer can avoid that withdrawal liability if the buyer agrees to assume an obligation to contribute to the pension …

BenefitsNotes.com is not the only blog maintained by attorneys at Leonard, Street and Deinard. Dodd-Frank.com, developed and maintained by attorneys at Leonard, Street and Deinard, is dedicated to making sense of the complex Dodd-Frank legislation and helping businesses understand how it will affect them specifically. A recent Dodd-Frank.com post highlights how the employee benefits …

Most employers are aware that the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman for federal law purposes, including federal tax and benefits law. For benefits governed by ERISA, this means that state laws that recognize same sex marriages are preempted. Although for some benefits (e.g.,…