September 2, 2021

US Department of Labor obtains final order against John J. Koresko for involvement in nationwide employee benefit plan scheme

PHILADELPHIA – In an investigative and legal pursuit that spanned more than 18 years, the U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a final order in a Pennsylvania federal court and concluded its long-standing case against a disbarred attorney and former benefits plan fiduciary who gained personally by diverting millions from employee benefit plans.

August 12, 2021

United Behavioral Health, United Healthcare Insurance Co. plans to pay $15.6M, take corrective actions after federal, state investigations

NEW YORK – United Behavioral Health and United Healthcare Insurance Co. will pay $13.6 million to affected participants and beneficiaries; pay $2,084,249 in penalties; and take other corrective actions following investigations and litigation by the U.S. Department of Labor and the New York State Attorney General.

July 23, 2021

Lansing business owner sentenced after federal investigation finds they failed to forward employee contributions to retirement plan

LANSING, MI – A Lansing business owner who failed to forward $25,252 in employer contributions and $52,753 in employee payroll-deducted retirement contributions to his company’s individual retirement plan will pay $798 in court fines and costs after pleading guilty in Michigan’s 30th Circuit Court of Ingham County.

July 9, 2021

Statement by US Secretary of Labor Walsh on the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation’s Interim Final Rule on Special Financial Assistance

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh issued the following statement on the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation’s issuance of an interim final rule implementing Special Financial Assistance to financially troubled multiemployer pension plans:

June 23, 2021

US Department of Labor reopens comment period for amendments to six class exemptions originally proposed in 2013

WASHINGTON, DC The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the reopening of the comment period on proposed amendments to six class exemptions from prohibited transaction rules set forth in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and the Internal Revenue Code.

April 21, 2021

Cincinnati pastor sentenced after collecting his deceased father’s pension, Social Security payments fraudulently for more than four years

CINCINNATI, OH – A Cincinnati pastor who collected $121,344 in pension funds and Social Security benefits under his deceased father’s name for more than four years will serve 180 days home confinement, and 3 years’ probation after pleading guilty in federal court in Ohio on Sept. 30, 2020.

April 14, 2021

US Department of Labor announces new cybersecurity guidance for plan sponsors, plan fiduciaries, record-keepers, plan participants

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced new guidance for plan sponsors, plan fiduciaries, record keepers and plan participants on best practices for maintaining cybersecurity, including tips on how to protect the retirement benefits of America’s workers. This is the first time the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration has issued cybersecurity guidance.

April 13, 2021

US Department of Labor releases guidance on investment advice exemption

WASHINGTON, DC The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration today issued guidance on fiduciary investment advice for retirement investors, employee benefit plans and investment advice providers. The guidance relates to the department’s “Improving Investment Advice for Workers & Retirees” exemption and follows its Feb.

April 12, 2021

Federal court appoints independent fiduciary as claims administrator of Medova arrangement

KANSAS CITY, MO – A consent order entered by the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas has appointed Receivership Management Inc. – an independent fiduciary based in Madison, Tennessee – to serve as claims administrator and oversee employee benefit plans and assets previously administered by Medova Healthcare Financial Group.

April 7, 2021

US Department of Labor issues guidance, model notices implementing American Rescue Plan’s COBRA premium assistance provisions

WASHINGTON, DC The U.S. Department of Labor today issued guidance implementing the American Rescue Plan’s Continuation of Health Coverage premium assistance provisions to provide full COBRA premium assistance to certain individuals who have experienced a reduction in hours or involuntary termination of employment.

February 22, 2021

Court restores more than $42K to employee benefit plan of defunct Detroit dental services provider after US Department of Labor complaint

DETROIT – Under terms of a consent order and judgement entered in federal court, the fiduciaries of Deliver Dental Solutions Inc. 401(k) Plan and Trust have agreed to restore $42,488 to the Detroit-based employee benefit plan.

February 12, 2021

US Department of Labor confirms investment advice exemption

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration has confirmed that “Improving Investment Advice for Worker & Retirees,” an exemption for investment advice fiduciaries, will go into effect as scheduled on Feb. 16, 2021.

January 19, 2021

U.S. Department of Labor Appoints New Members To the 2021 ERISA Advisory Council

WASHINGTON, DC Today the U.S. Department of Labor announced the appointment of five members and leadership for the 2021 Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans, also known as the ERISA Advisory Council.

January 12, 2021

U.S. Department of Labor Issues Missing Participant Guidance

WASHINGTON, DC The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) today announced guidance in its ongoing efforts to help plan fiduciaries meet their obligations under Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to locate and distribute retirement benefits to missing or nonresponsive participants.

Today’s guidance comes in three forms:

January 5, 2021

Court Sentences Former United Industrial and Service Workers Union President After U.S. Department of Labor Embezzlement Investigation

LOS ANGELES, CA – The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California has sentenced John S. Romero – a former president of the United Industrial and Service Workers of America in Colton, California – to 12 years in prison for embezzling funds from the union’s health plan, conspiracy and making false statements on annual government filings.

December 29, 2020

U.S. Department of Labor Issues Guidance Supporting Workplace Flexibilities through Virtual Communication

WASHINTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) today announced new guidance in its ongoing efforts to support the American workforce through the pandemic recovery. As employers continue to meet the challenges presented to their businesses by the coronavirus, and as telework arrangements and virtual communication increasingly provide solutions, the agency provides additional guidance to maximize the benefits of these arrangements for employers and workers alike.

December 18, 2020

U.S. Department Of Labor Files Complaint to Protect Participants And Beneficiaries of Failing Medova MEWA Operating in 38 States

KANSAS CITY, MO – The U.S. Department of Labor filed a complaint in U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas against Wichita, Kansas-based Medova Healthcare Financial Group LLC, its president and CEO Daniel L. Whitney, chief operating officer Michelle Willson and Midlands Casualty Insurance Co. Inc.

December 16, 2020

Court Appoints Independent Fiduciary to Distribute $1,500,000 In Retirement Funds Held By Defunct Oregon Retirement Plans

SEATTLE, WA – The U.S. District Court of Oregon recently granted the U.S. Department of Labor’s motion for default judgment against Portland, Oregon-based National Security Retirement Plan LLC and Invest n’ Retire LLC for abandoning employer sponsored benefit plans while 31 participants’ assets, worth over $1,500,000, remained in them. The participants were employees of Retirement Solutions Advisors LLC, the National Association for Plan Liability and Keene Photography Studio.