Pension and Employee Benefits Law

Discussion - 3 hours. Introduction to federal laws regulating pension plans, employer-sponsored health plans, and other employee benefits, including the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and certain tax rules under the Internal Revenue Code.  The course will cover a variety of topics, such as the demise of the traditional pension plan and the shift to 401(k) plans, IRAs and Roth IRAs as primary retirement vehicles, the investment of pension plan assets under the ERISA fiduciary rules, benefit denials, enforcement and litigation, federal preemption, and spousal protections in the pension system.  The course will be beneficial to students interested in employment law, health care law, tax law, the financial services industry (note the significance of pension funds as institutional investors), as well as general corporate law and litigation.