ESOP Blog

Anyone can serve as a trustee, but it should be someone with the requisite knowledge and skills or someone who will acquire them. While a seller can be a trustee, it is not a good idea as courts and the DOL will regard it as a per se conflict of interest. Who selects the trustee?…

Can an independent trustee be designated for a particular issue? Yes. A reasonable compromise for many companies is to have an inside trustee or trust committee for normal operations but appoint an outside trustee for special circumstances that present strong conflicts of interest, such as an acquisition proposal. What are the arguments for having an…

A trustee is the person or institution that normally has the formal responsibility to make sure the plan is operated for “the exclusive benefit of plan participants.” Trustees can be “independent” or “directed.” An independent trustee makes decisions for the plan based on the trustee’s judgment, relying as needed on advice from qualified professionals; a…

Baby boomers have changed the face of the U.S. population for more than 70 years and continue to do so as more enter their senior years, a demographic shift often referred to as a “gray tsunami.” The 2020 Census will provide the most up-to-date count of the baby boom generation, now estimated at about 73…