Erin Turley

Erin Turley 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). Erin is a member of the Firm-wide Management Committee.Read Erin Turley's full bio.
Understanding a Trustee’s Role in Management Incentive Plans
By Erin Turley on Jun 9, 2022
Posted In Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Executive Compensation, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
On May 5, 2022, McDermott Partner Erin Turley delivered a presentation during the 2022 TEA National Conference titled “Understanding a Trustee’s Role in Management Incentive Plans.” Her presentation focused on the trustee’s role in Management Incentive Plans (MIPs), how retention and performance stock appreciation rights (SARs) impact an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) and ways...
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ERISA Litigation: What Have We Learned?
By Erin Turley on May 24, 2022
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Executive Compensation, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
Earlier this spring, McDermott Partner Erin Turley delivered a presentation about the impacts of recent Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) litigation. Lawsuits now target both large and small employee benefit plans; plan sponsors are being sued and dragged into complex and lengthy litigation, thus changing the basic economics of the provision of...
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Expect More Difficulty Obtaining Fiduciary Insurance
By Erin Turley on Dec 7, 2021
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Privacy and Data Security, Retirement Plans
Increasing retirement plan-focused litigation has put insurance carriers and fiduciary service providers in difficult positions. In this article published in PLANSPONSOR, McDermott Partner Erin Turley said such litigation continues to be a “major focus” in the fiduciary insurance marketplace. “It is a challenging market right now, to the point that we are looking at trying...
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Missing Participants, Cybersecurity Top Challenges for Plan Advisors
By Erin Turley on Oct 28, 2021
Posted In Employee Benefits, Privacy and Data Security, Retirement Plans
Missing participants and cybersecurity are among the top challenges for retirement plan advisors, according to participants at the National Association of Plan Advisors’ 2021 NAPA 401(k) Summit in Las Vegas. During the Summit’s opening day workshop session, McDermott Partner Erin Turley said advisors should make an effort to discuss cybersecurity with clients in advance of...
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Mature ESOPs: Remodeling the House You Own
By Erin Turley on Sep 30, 2021
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Retirement Plans
What kind of issues affect employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) companies as they mature? McDermott Partner Erin Turley presented on this topic during The ESOP Association‘s TEA National 2021 Conference. Access the slides.
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How to Apply the IRS’s COBRA Premium Subsidy Guidance
By Erin Turley, Jacob Mattinson, Judith Wethall, Sarah Raaii and Teal Trujillo on Jun 9, 2021
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans
On May 18, 2021, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued much-anticipated Notice 2021-31 (the Notice) regarding the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) premium subsidy provisions of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). Under ARPA, a 100% COBRA premium subsidy and additional COBRA enrollment rights are available to certain assistance eligible individuals (AEIs)...
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DOL Move Bodes Well for Socially Conscious 401(k) Investing
By Erin Turley on Apr 20, 2021
Posted In Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans
The US Department of Labor’s decision last month to table Trump-era regulations limiting socially conscious investments by retirement plans signals that the Biden administration is considering an embrace of so-called ESG funds, which attempt to advance environmental, social and corporate governance goals. Tabling these regulations brings “the Department of Labor into alignment with the desire...
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Final Rule for Selecting Retirement Plan Investments Leaves “ESG” Behind
By Emily Rickard, Erin Turley and Brian Tiemann on Dec 17, 2020
Posted In Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
In recent guidance, the Department of Labor clarified the retirement plan standards for environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) investing without mentioning the term ESG. The new guidance provides that, when selecting and monitoring plan investments, an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) fiduciary must never sacrifice investment returns, take on additional investment risk or...
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How Advisers Serving MEPs and PEPs Can Be Conflicted
By Erin Turley on Aug 7, 2020
Posted In Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans
The most obvious potential conflict of interest for advisers setting up or serving pooled employer plans is if their practice is affiliated with the investments being selected—but there are other potential pitfalls to acknowledge. In a recent article, Erin Turley, a partner with McDermott Will & Emery, said a potential conflict of interest for advisers...
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COVID-19 — Tax Planning Opportunity for Defined Benefit Participants?
By Diane Morgenthaler, Erin Turley and Todd Solomon on Apr 14, 2020
Posted In Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans
Much has been written about the new CARES Act distribution that allows impacted COVID-19 participants to access up to $100,000 in their tax-qualified defined contribution plan penalty-free and with income taxes spread over three years. However, the CARES Act legislation applies to all “eligible retirement plans” as defined in Code Section 402. So technically the...
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