Two more federal Circuit Courts have weighed in on whether mandatory arbitration provisions with class action waivers are enforceable under the U.S. Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (âERISAâ). With recent rulings in Cedeno v. Sasson, 100 F.4th 386 (2d Cir. 2024) and Parker v Tenneco, 2024 WL 3873409 (6th Cir. Aug 1, 2024), the Second and Sixth Circuits now join the Third, Seventh, and Tenth Circuits in holding that arbitration provisions…
Happy New Year from California. Â As a reminder, starting January 1, 2024, changes to California’s state disability insurance (SDI) program will effectively increase taxes for employees working in California by 1.1% on income over $153,164. This is the result of both the elimination of the taxable wage limit (which was $153,164 in 2023) and an increase in the California SDI rate, from 0.9% in 2023, such that SDI will apply on all wages at a…
On December 14, 2022, the SEC adopted final rules amending Rule 10b5-1 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the âExchange Actâ), which provides an affirmative defense to insider trading for trades made under a written plan adopted when not aware of material nonpublic information (âMNPIâ). The final rules add several new conditions for the availability of the affirmative defense and require new quarterly and Form 4 disclosures regarding the Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangements of…
SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (the âActâ) was signed into law by President Biden on December 29, 2022, as part of the year-end omnibus spending bill known as the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. The Act follows the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Act of 2019 (often referred to as “SECURE Act 1.0”) and makes numerous changes affecting retirement plans which are intended to strengthen the US retirement system. Below are some of the…
There has recently been a great deal of interest in the grant of a profits interest. A profits interest is a beneficial form of incentive for an individual who performs services for a partnership or other pass-through entity, like a limited liability company. Bottom line, a profits interest (also commonly known as a “carried interest”) is a non-capital interest in the profits of a partnership or a membership interest in a limited liability company taxed…
The Internal Revenue Service has issued welcome guidance related to the COBRA subsidy provisions under the American Rescue Plan Act (“ARPA”) in the form of IRS Notice 2021-31 (the “Notice”). As background, for the period from April 1, 2021, through September 30, 2021, ARPA requires employers to provide a 100% COBRA premium subsidy (the “COBRA Subsidy”) for “assistance eligible individuals” (an “Eligible Individual”). In general, an Eligible Individual is anyone who elects COBRA continuation coverage…
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (the âARPAâ), was signed into law on March 11, 2021, and creates a temporary COBRA premium subsidy for certain qualifying individuals. This COBRA premium subsidy applies to all group health plans subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. Thus, most employers will be impacted by the new COBRA subsidy. Employers will need to evaluate the impact of the ARPA not only with respect to COBRA…
Many employers will be surprised to learn that the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARPA”), which was signed into law on March 11, 2021 and is primarily intended to provide an economic stimulus package of $1.9 trillion, expanded the group of covered employees under section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (“Section 162(m)”), to include the five most highly compensated employees in addition to certain of the individuals already included…
After months of partisan bickering and Senate inaction, Congress finally passed another round of COVID-19 relief legislation as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, P.L. 116-260, (âCAAâ), which was signed into law on December 27, 2020. We provide a summary of the tax-related CAA provisions and key modifications to the Paycheck Protection Program (âPPPâ), before discussing President Bidenâs tax agenda for 2021. The CAAâs tax provisions focus primarily on providing economic relief to taxpayers…
With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting all facets of business, this webcast focuses on the implications for employers and their pension arrangements. Increased economic pressure, new legislation and recent government guidance is impacting how employers are navigating these changes across the globe. With a spotlight on the UK, US and Australia, we discuss key pension issues and practical steps employers should be taking moving forward. Click here to watch the podcast.