Employee Benefits and ERISA

Employee Benefits and ERISA services are concentrated in two general areas:  Employee Benefits and ERISA litigation.  The lawyers in these two areas work together, sharing information, ideas and resources on client matters, in order to keep abreast of legislative, administrative and judicial developments.

Employee Benefits Practice

The Firm has an established employee benefits practice, representing employers in the design, implementation and administration of all types of employee benefit plans and deferred compensation arrangements. Our Benefits attorneys are business-oriented, focus on a practical approach to ERISA and benefits law and are thoroughly familiar with the increasingly complex array of statutes, regulations, regulatory guidance and case law governing employee benefit plans. We have specific experience in the following types of matters:

• Qualified and Non-Qualified Retirement Plans
• Employee Stock Ownership Plans, including leveraged ESOPs
• Governmental Plans
• Tax Sheltered Annuities
• Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation Arrangements
• Voluntary Compliance Programs
• Plan Terminations, Plan Mergers and Plan-to-Plan Transfers
• Employee Welfare Benefit Matters, including group health plans, 125 cafeteria plans and other fringe benefit plans, HIPAA compliance and COBRA compliance
• ERISA Fiduciary Matters
• Employee Benefits Matters in Business Transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, restructurings and divestitures
• Representation of clients before the U. S. Department of Labor, the Internal Revenue Service and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
• ERISA Reporting and Disclosure Matters
• Executive Compensation and Employment Agreements
• Employee Benefits Matters in Bankruptcies and Reorganizations

ERISA Litigation Practice

Crowe & Dunlevy ERISA Litigation attorneys are especially experienced in defending cases concerning ERISA preemption of other laws, whether asserted as bad faith or claims for benefits against benefit plans and/or related entities such as insurers, employers and administrators.  Frequently these cases involve claims for:

• Insurance benefits
• Continued medical coverage under COBRA and under state statutes
• Breach of fiduciary duty
• Wrongful termination for exercising ERISA rights
• Penalties for failing to furnish information or notice under ERISA and COBRA

Our ERISA Litigation attorneys also handle cases which involve both ERISA issues and other issues such as wrongful termination, bankruptcy, tort law and subrogation.