Diane Morgenthaler
Subscribe to Diane Morgenthaler's PostsDiane M. Morgenthaler focuses her practice on employee benefits and executive compensation. She represents clients in matters before the US Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Labor and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Diane serves as employee benefit counsel to Fortune 500 corporations and other global corporations, and represents both public and private clients. She regularly designs and implements a variety of employee benefit plans and programs. Diane has extensive experience in employee benefit issues involved in acquisitions, reorganizations and divestitures and in the design of employee benefits plans following such transactions. She also advises clients in matters involving multi-employer withdrawal liability, fiduciary liability and benefit claims. Read Diane Morgenthaler's full bio.
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.
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DOL Significantly Increases Some Penalties for ERISA Violations
By Alan D. Nesburg, PC and Diane Morgenthaler on Dec 29, 2016
Posted In Retirement Plans
The US Department of Labor increased the penalties for specified violations of the Employee Income Retirement Security Act of 1974. Most of the penalty increases involve reporting and disclosure failures related to benefit plans and will be effective for penalties assessed after August 1, 2016, if the violation occurred after November 1, 2015. Read full...
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ERISA Basics National Institute: Section 401(k) Plans
By Diane Morgenthaler on Nov 15, 2016
Posted In Benefit Controversies, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
A 401(k) plan has a qualified cash or deferred arrangement that is part of a profit sharing plan or stock bonus plan. Under the Internal Revenue Code Section 401(k)(2), an employee may elect to make contributions to the plan, the covered employee’s contributions are not distributable before severance from employment, disability, death, attainment of age...
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IRS Announces Employee Benefit Plan Limits for 2017
By Diane Morgenthaler, Jeffrey Holdvogt and Jacob Mattinson on Oct 28, 2016
Posted In Employment, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans
The Internal Revenue Service recently announced the cost-of-living adjustments to the applicable dollar limits for various employer-sponsored retirement and welfare plans for 2017. Although some of the dollar limits currently in effect for 2016 will change, the majority of the limits will remain unchanged for 2017. Read the full article here.
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DOL Significantly Increases Some Penalties for ERISA Violations
By Alan D. Nesburg, PC and Diane Morgenthaler on Jul 26, 2016
Posted In Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans
The US Department of Labor increased the penalties for specified violations of the Employee Income Retirement Security Act of 1974. Most of the penalty increases involve reporting and disclosure failures related to benefit plans and will be effective for penalties assessed after August 1, 2016, if the violation occurred after November 1, 2015. Under the...
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Reportable Event Changes for Pension Plans Effective January 1, 2016
By McDermott Will & Emery, Diane Morgenthaler and Patrick Ryan on Dec 2, 2015
Posted In Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
Effective January 1, 2016, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) altered the reportable event rules for defined benefit pension plans. Although new PBGC regulations make electronic filing of all reportable event notices mandatory, the regulations also substantially reduce the reporting requirements for pension plan administrators, sponsors and contributing employers. Read the full article.
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IRS Announces Employee Benefit Plan Limits for 2016
By Diane Morgenthaler, Jeffrey Holdvogt and Jacob Mattinson on Oct 23, 2015
Posted In Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced the cost-of-living adjustments to the applicable dollar limits for various employer-sponsored retirement and welfare plans for 2016. Although some of the dollar limits currently in effect for 2015 will change, the majority of the limits will remain unchanged for 2016. Read full article.
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McDermott’s Todd Solomon Discusses Same-Sex Employee Benefits with the Wall Street Journal
By Diane Morgenthaler and McDermott Will & Emery on May 14, 2015
Posted In Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Employment, Executive Compensation, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans
As the U.S. Supreme Court weighs whether gay couples are constitutionally entitled to marry, more companies in states with marriage equality have begun to mandate that gay employees marry in order to maintain benefits, including health care coverage. In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, McDermott partner Todd Solomon discusses the shifting terrain...
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DOL Provides Greater Flexibility for Distribution of Annual Participant Fee Disclosure Effective Immediately
By Diane Morgenthaler, Jeffrey Holdvogt and Maggie McTigue on Apr 23, 2015
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employment
New guidance by the U.S. Department of Labor provides defined contribution plan administrators with additional flexibility to extend the 12-month period to a 14-month period for distribution of the required annual fee disclosure to plan participants and beneficiaries. Read the full article.
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Supreme Court Rejects Sixth Circuit’s Yard-Man Inferences in M&G Polymers USA, LLC v. Tackett
By Diane Morgenthaler, Joshua D. Rogaczewski and Michael T. Graham on Feb 24, 2015
Posted In Benefit Controversies, Health and Welfare Plans
M&G Polymers USA, LLC v. Tackett, a recent unanimous decision by the Supreme Court of the United States, is a game changer. By expressly repudiating the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit’s 1983 Yard-Man decision and the many decisions following it, the Supreme Court rejected three decades of Sixth Circuit law inferring that...
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