Bio

Representative Matters

• Compliance Counsel - advising on how best to satisfy tax, labor, employment and PBGC pronouncements and regulations, including ERISA reporting and disclosure requirements
• Plan administration and correction - helping clients interpret and administer plans and, if necessary, correcting problems using IRS and DOL correction programs
• Fiduciary counseling and plan termination guidance - counseling employers, plan trustees and others about fiduciary responsibility, prohibited transactions, unrelated business income, mergers and transfers of plan assets, and plan termination.

• Benefit program design - identifying the greatest tax advantages, utilizing cross-testing and Social Security integration and comparability
• Draft of Plan documents - creating both individually designed and IRS pre-approved plan documents that satisfy requirements for qualified retirement plans
• Plan qualification - overseeing and managing the process of obtaining IRS favorable determination letters for qualified retirement plans

• Flexible benefit plans - designing and drafting flexible benefit (cafeteria) and helping clients administer them

• Equity compensation - drafting and advising on stock-based plans that provide for both incentive and non-statutory (non-qualified) stock options, stock appreciation rights plans and direct stock bonus grants; analyzing and advising on tax consequences
• Nonqualified deferred compensation - drafting and advising on the structure and tax ramifications of arrangements that defer compensation independent of qualified plans, and analyzing tax consequences under Tax Code Section 409A

• ERISA litigation - providing substantive consulting on underlying benefit issues
• Benefit claim disputes - advising clients on litigation risks and assisting with the proper handling of the plan's administrative claims review procedure