“Retirement plans return to limelight“: an interesting article by Jennifer Kho for the East Bay Business Times reports that smaller companies are starting to establish retirement plans again, a sign that things are looking up. Quote of note: “According to the Society of Human Research Management, companies with defined benefit retirement plans have dropped from 54 percent in 1999 to 42 percent in 2003, while those with defined contribution retirement plans, including 401(k)s with or without matches, have increased from 71 percent to 75 percent in that time.”
CBS Marketwatch has this article on “orphan plans”: “Disconnected from your 401(k) ‘Orphan’ plans pose logistical woes for participants.” For those who do not know, orphan plans are plans which no longer have a plan sponsor or fiduciary. According to the article, when the DOL discovers such a plan it usually tries to locate former fiduciaries or goes to court to have an independent fiduciary appointed to distribute out assets.
The Motley Fool has this helpful resource: “Ten Ways to Size Up a Broker.”
OnQue Technologies has an article discussing ERISA fiduciary duties from a health plan perspective: “What Is Your ERISA Fiduciary Duty To Beneficiaries?“
Dan Morse for the Wall Street Journal: “Older Workers in the Lurch For an Employee Laid Off After Decades On the Job, Question Is What to Do Next.”
Also, in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal : “Attorneys Face a Paradox In the SEC Conduct Rules.” The article discusses the conflict between SEC rules and some state laws governing attorney conduct, a subject which was previously discussed by Mike O’Sullivan at CorpLawBlog here.