ERISA Principles

A systematic policy analysis of ERISA, the notoriously complex amalgam of labor, trust and tax law regulating employee benefit plans.

Peter J. Wiedenbeck (Author), Brendan S. Maher (Author)

9781107167032, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 22 February 2024

568 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 3.5 cm, 0.95 kg

'ERISA Principles is the authoritative scholarly work on United States employee benefit plans, which are a primary source of net worth of employed Americans. Wiedenbeck and Maher are clear, insightful, and visionary guides to how these plans work and how they are and should be governed.' Kent Syverud, Syracuse University

ERISA, the detailed and technical amalgam of labor law, trust law, and tax law, directly governs trillions of dollars spent on retirement savings, health care, and other important benefits for more than 100 million Americans. Despite playing this central role in the US economy and social insurance systems, the complexities of ERISA are often understood by only a few specialists. ERISA Principles elucidates employee benefit law from a policy perspective, concisely explaining how common themes apply across a wide range of benefit plans and factual contexts. The book's non-technical language and cross-cutting conceptual organization reveal latent similarities and rationalize differences between the regulatory treatment of apparently disparate programs, including traditional pensions, 401(k), and health care plans. Important legal developments - whether statutory, judicial, or administrative - are framed and analyzed in an accessible, principles-centric manner, explaining how ERISA functions as a coherent whole.

Table of Cases
Table of Statutes
Part I. General Consideration: 1. Overview of ERISA
2. ERISA's Coverage
Part II. Conduct Controls: Welfare and Pension Plans: 3. Disclosure
4. Fiduciary Obligations
5. Enforcement
6. Preemption
Part III. Content Controls: Pension Plans: 7. Accumulation
8. Distribution
9. Security
Part IV. Tax Controls: Qualified Retirement Saving: 10. Taxes and Retirement Saving
Part V. Health Plan Content Controls: 11. Employment-Based Health
Appendix
Index.

Subject Areas: Taxation & duties law [LNU]