Tag Archives: retirement plans

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

The “Fiduciary Prudence Trinity”: A Blueprint for Evaluating the Prudence of Fiduciary Investments

In my last post, I discussed the significance of three ERISA related decisions-Tibble, Hughes/Northwestern and Brotherston. I like to refer to these three cases as the “fiduciary responsibility trinity,” because I believe that, collectively, they will shape the future of … Continue reading

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The “Fiduciary Responsibility Trinity”: ERISA Fiduciary Law After the Hughes/Northwestern Decision

SCOTUS recently announced its much anticipated decision in the case of Hughes v. Northwestern University.1The significance of the decision cannot be overstated, as it dramatically changes the “rules of the game” for 401(k) and 403(b) retirement plans, Hughes was the … Continue reading

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The #Northwestern403b Decision: What Next For Plan Sponsors?

This past Monday, SCOTUS issued its much anticipated decision in Hughes v. Northwestern University (#Northwestern403b) The original issue before the Court was whether or not the plan participants had properly plead their case in their complaint. The lower courts had … Continue reading

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

4Q 2021 AMVR “Cheat Sheet”

At the end of each calendar quarter, InvestSense publishes the 5 and 10-year Active Management Value Ratio (AMVR) scores of the non-index funds in “Pensions & Investments” annual survey of the most used mutual funds in U.S. defined contribution plans. … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 403b, cost-efficiency, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary 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

Game Changer-Why Hughes v. Northwestern University Matters

People constantly ask me why I am so fixated on the Hughes v. Northwestern University case (Northwestern403b). Simply put, SCOTUS’ decision in this case will have a significant impact on 401(k)/403(b) plan sponsors and every other investment fiduciary. The plan … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary standard, retirement plans, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Costs, Correlations, and Prudent Fiduciary Investing

The financial adviser tells you that a fund has a five-year compound return of 20 percent. The fund’s advertisement tells you that the fund has a five-year compound return of 20 percent. Morningstar tells you that the fund has a … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 403b, fiduciary compliance | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment