Allison Wilkerson
Subscribe to Allison Wilkerson's Posts
Allison Wilkerson focuses her practice on employee benefits matters. She has extensive experience handling issues pertaining to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs). Read Allison Wilkerson's full bio.
Settling the Standard for Prudence? Fall Brings New Guidance for ESOP Trustees
By McDermott Will & Emery, Allison Wilkerson, J. Christian Nemeth and McDermott Will & Emery on Dec 5, 2017
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
Through a series of recent settlements, the US Department of Labor has outlined the process steps fiduciaries should follow in connection with a transaction involving a purchase from, or sale to, an employee stock ownership plan. Continue Reading.
Continue Reading
Are Your Employee Communications Up to Snuff? — ERISA Disclosure Practices
By McDermott Will & Emery and Allison Wilkerson on Oct 12, 2017
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans
Mary Samsa and Allison Wilkerson discussed that the majority of ERISA disclosures are in fact employee communications – many of which are viewed as “routine” by employers. As such, plan sponsors are continually balancing the best way in which to relay complex benefit plan information in a manner to best be understood by employees but...
Continue Reading
McDermott Announces Determination Letter Replacement Program, Addressing the Gap in Retirement Plan Compliance
By Brian Tiemann, Diane Morgenthaler, Jeffrey Holdvogt, Jacob Mattinson, Joseph K. Urwitz, Kay Kemp, Lisa Loesel, Maggie McTigue , Mary K. Samsa, Sarah L. Engle, Allison Wilkerson, Alan D. Nesburg, PC, Andrew Liazos, McDermott Will & Emery and Todd Solomon on Oct 10, 2017
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
Since the announcement by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that sponsors of individually designed retirement plans may no longer receive a periodic determination letter, plan sponsors have faced uncertainty about how to demonstrate compliance for their retirement plans. Our McDermott Retirement Plan Compliance Program, a new opinion letter and operational review program for individually designed...
Continue Reading
Hurricane Harvey Relief for Employee Benefit Plans
By Allison Wilkerson and Diane Morgenthaler on Sep 7, 2017
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Employment, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Health and Welfare Plans, Labor, Retirement Plans
The Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Labor relaxed some deadlines for eligible employee benefit plans and expanded the availability of withdrawals and loans for eligible defined contribution plan participants in the disaster area. However, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation announced that some of its required filings will not be extended automatically. Continue reading.
Continue Reading
Employers Can Provide Tax-Free Disaster Assistance to Employees
By Allison Wilkerson, Robert C. Louthian, III and Ruth Wimer on Sep 5, 2017
Posted In Employee Benefits, Labor
Section 139 of the Internal Revenue Code allows an employer to provide tax-free qualified disaster relief payments to Texas and Louisiana employees in designated areas affected by Hurricane Harvey. Continue reading.
Continue Reading
Proposed Changes to § 409a Regulations: Greater Clarity and Better Planning Alternatives
By Andrew Liazos and Allison Wilkerson on Jun 22, 2017
Posted In Employee Benefits, Executive Compensation
Andrew Liazos and Allison Wilkerson wrote this bylined article on Tax Code Section 409A’s deferral and payment requirements for nonqualified deferred compensation plans. Recent IRS Section 409A guidance makes “several helpful changes that employers will want to consider and take advantage of,” the authors wrote, and they warned employers that they ignore final IRS “at...
Continue Reading
ESOP Trends in the Marketplace
By Allison Wilkerson on May 25, 2017
Posted In Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs)
Over the years, employee stock ownership plans (ESOP) have evolved in many ways. Currently, ESOP transactions began to resemble traditional M&A transactions including financial structures, warrants and market rate sub-debt. In a recent presentation at the NCEO Employee Ownership Conference, Allison Wilkerson discusses current marketplace trends in structuring ESOP transactions, including the importance of pre-transaction...
Continue Reading
Proposed Changes to 409A Regulations Provide Greater Clarity and Planning Alternatives
By Andrew Liazos and Allison Wilkerson on Dec 27, 2016
Posted In Benefit Controversies, Executive Compensation
On June 22, 2016, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued proposed regulations to modify and clarify existing regulations under Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code. The proposed changes were in response to practitioner comments and the IRS’s experience with Section 409A after the issuance of the final regulations in 2007. Overall, the proposed modifications are...
Continue Reading
View From McDermott: Fifth Circuit Focuses on Process in ESOP Valuations
By Allison Wilkerson on Jul 28, 2016
Posted In Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Labor, Retirement Plans
Though the Supreme Court’s 2014 unanimous ruling in Fifth Third Bank v. Dudenhoeffer announced the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) standards for stock valuation in the context of a large public employee stock ownership plan (ESOP), the vast majority of ESOPs are still grappling with valuation issues. ESOPs that hold stock of closely-held corporations—approximately...
Continue Reading
Form 5500 Deadline Extension Repealed
By Allison Wilkerson, Joseph K. Urwitz and Sarah L. Engle on Mar 11, 2016
Posted In Health and Welfare Plans
On December 4, 2015, President Obama signed the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act). In addition to authorizing $305 billion in funding for federal highway projects, the FAST Act also repeals the recently enacted extension to the Form 5500 filing deadline included in the Surface Transportation and Veterans Health Care Choice Improvement Act (Surface...
Continue Reading
