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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    On-Demand

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

  • work Practice Area

    ERISA

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Wednesday, July 6, 2022

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

$347.00
CLE
ALL

This CLE course will discuss the most common errors and how to correct them under the IRS and DOL correction programs: the Employee Plan Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) and the Voluntary Fiduciary Compliance Program (VFCP).

Faculty

Tonie L. Bitseff
Special Counsel
Buchalter

Ms. Bitseff is a member of the Corporate Law and Labor & Employment Practice Groups in the Firm’s Seattle office. She provides advice on compensation and benefit matters and serves as ERISA counsel in connection with employee benefit plans and employers. Ms. Bitseff addresses legal issues in design, implementation, administration, corrections, and conflict resolution related to health plans, severance plans, life insurance, disability benefits, wellness plans, 125 plans, individual account plans (HSAs, FSAs, and HRAs), and retirement plans. She assists clients with design, diligence review, internal audits, benefit outsourcing, vendor management, coverage issues, ERISA fiduciary liability, ERISA claims and appeals processes, and government audits. Ms. Bitseff also serves as ERISA counsel supporting contract negotiations and business transactions such as mergers and acquisitions.

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Maria Hurd
Director and Shareholder
Belfint Lyons & Shuman, PA

Ms. Hurd is responsible for planning, supervising and reviewing audits of single and multi-employer benefit plans. ERISA attorneys frequently ask her to perform the final audit of terminated benefit plan financial statements for national companies undergoing bankruptcy proceedings in Delaware. Along with her retirement plan audit services, Ms. Hurd assists clients with corporate service matters for Delaware investment holding companies. She frequently gives the auditor’s perspective in education panels targeting plan sponsors, investment advisors, third-party administrators, and other service providers in the industry. Ms. Hurd initiated and leads the firm’s employee benefit audit blog – The Art of the Qualified Plan Audit.

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Description

The IRS and DOL continue their heightened scrutiny of retirement plans. Plan audits typically reveal noncompliance issues that can result in substantial penalties for employers. ERISA counsel and advisers must understand IRS and DOL enforcement and audit procedures and identify audit risks and steps to remedy noncompliance through available self-correction programs or other options.

Significant compliance risks stem from the failure to recognize plan document defects, a specific area of focus during an IRS audit of a retirement plan. In 2021, the IRS enhanced its plan correction programs to permit employers additional ways to self-correct operational failures. Also, the DOL has focused, and continues to focus, on timely deposits of employee deferral contributions.

Compliance risks include, among others, failure to deposit deferral amounts due to improper exclusion, use of an incorrect definition of compensation, universal availability errors, failure to observe a participant's election, late deferral deposits, insufficient required minimum distributions, and more. Companies risk exposure to government penalties and sanctions, such as disallowing deductions for employer contributions and plan disqualification.

Listen as our panel of specialists discusses current IRS and DOL focus areas, correcting noncompliance, and mitigating audit risks.

Outline

  1. IRS and DOL critical areas of focus
  2. Identifying plan document defects
  3. Remedying compliance issues to avoid liability and penalties
  4. IRS self-correction rules; effective administrative procedures and corrective actions

Benefits

The panel will review these and other key issues:

  • IRS self-correction programs, rules, and challenges
  • Recognizing plan document defects
  • Addressing and correcting areas of noncompliance
  • Determining employee eligibility and compensation
  • Making timely payments of deferral contributions
  • Minimizing audit risks