Category Archives: prudence

Redefining Fiduciary Prudence for 401(k) Plan Sponsors

by James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP®, AWMA® The legal requirement for prudence, as defined in ERISA Section 404(a)(1)(B), is for a fiduciary to discharge his or her duties with: “the care, skill, prudence, and diligence under the circumstances then prevailing that a prudent man acting in a … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, closet index funds, compliance, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, DOL fiduciary rule, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, investment advisers, investments, pension plans, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement plans, risk management | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

At What Cost?: Annuities, Cryptocurrency, and Fiduciary Law

A [fiduciary] is held to something stricter than the morals of the market place.  Not honesty alone, but the punctilio of an honor the most sensitive, is the standard of behavior….1 Fiduciary law is a combination of three types of … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, Annuities, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, Cost_Efficiency, ERISA litigation, evidence based investing, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary standard, investment advisers, pension plans, prudence, retirement plans, risk management, securities compliance, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Less Is More: Plan Sponsors and the Art of Fiduciary Thinking

When I read about the House passing the SECURE 2.0 bill, I had three immediate thoughts: “Annuities are sold, not bought.” “So, plan sponsors are going to be able to automatically force employees to contribute to non-compliant 401(k) plans loaded … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, Active Management Value Ratio, Annuities, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary standard, pension plans, prudence | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Connecting the Dots: Correlation of Returns and Fiduciary Prudence

With SCOTUS’ recent decision in Hughes v. Northwestern University1, we now have what I like to refer to as the “fiduciary responsibility trinity” (Trinity). The Trinity consists of the Tibble v. Edison International2 (Tibble), Brotherston v. Putnam Investments, LLC3(Brotherston), and … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, closet index funds, compliance, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, pension plans, prudence, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Plan Sponsor Alert: The Hidden Message in the #Northwestern403b Hearing

There were two issues properly before SCOTUS in the recent #Northwestern403b hearing: (1) the sufficiency of the plan participants’ complaint, and (2) the legal merits of the 7th Circuit’s rationale for dismissing the plan participants’ complaint, the “menu of options” … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, cost consciousness, cost-efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary standard, investment advisers, investments, pension plans, prudence, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Really Smart Experts Measure AMVR: Blueprint for 401(k)/403(b) Litigation and Design

In a recent post, I wrote (1) that plan participants should never lose a properly vetted 401(k)/403(b) litigation action, and (2) a properly designed and maintained 401(k)/403(b) plan should should never lose a breach of fiduciary duties action based on … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, Cost_Efficiency, ERISA, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, pension plans, prudence, retirement plans, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

3Q 2021 Top Ten 401(k) AMVR “Cheat Sheet”

When InvestSense prepares a forensic analysis for a 401(k)/403(b) pension plan, a trust, an attorney, or an institutional client, we always do an analysis over five and ten-year time periods to analyze the consistency of performance. Since so many social … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k investments, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, asset allocation, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost-efficiency, Cost_Efficiency, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, financial planning, prudence, retirement planning, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Non-Commission Annuities: The “New” Fiduciary Annuity Trap

“Equity abhors a windfall.” Fiduciary law is largely based on trust, agency and equity law, with an emphasis on fundamental fairness. Any situation in which a fiduciary benefits at a beneficiary’s expense is a potential breach of the fiduciary’s duties. … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, Annuities, compliance, consumer protection, cost-efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, investment advisers, prudence, Reg BI, RIA Compliance, RIA marketing, securities compliance, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Modern Portfolio Theory, the Prudent Investor Rule and Fiduciary Investing

Given the volatility of today’s stock market, the subject of fiduciary investing is a timely topic.  A fiduciary relationship creates the highest duty imposed by law, requiring that a fiduciary always put a client’s interests first and act solely on … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, DOL fiduciary rule, DOL fiduciary standard, ERISA, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary standard, prudence, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The CareerBuilder 401(k) Decision: Three Key Lessons for Plan Sponsors and ERISA Attorneys

“If we desire respect for the law we must first make the law respectful.” Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandies Currently, we have different federal courts handing down various interpretations of ERISA. As a result, in some cases the public’s guaranteed … Continue reading

Posted in 401k compliance, 401k investments, 404c, 404c compliance, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, evidence based investing, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary standard, investment advisers, pension plans, prudence, retirement plans | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment