Private equity investments raise a second layer of fiduciary difficulty because they are not simply harder to compare. They are also harder to value, harder to redeem, and harder to explain to participants who may assume daily-priced plan options operate under familiar public-market rules.
Tag "ERISA"
Ongoing forfeiture lawsuits involving major plans are reshaping how courts evaluate fiduciary oversight. Sponsors who rely on routine processes may discover that governance gaps create legal exposure for committees and financial harm for participants.
Cunningham v. Cornell is testing whether traditional 401k fiduciary compliance truly protects plan sponsors. Courts and regulators are probing governance gaps, personal liability, and participant harm more aggressively than ever.
Fiduciary litigation did not let up in 2025, and 2026 is seeing even more refined theories targeting 401k plans. Plan sponsors must look beyond procedural checklists to avoid the top governance pitfalls that trigger personal liability and erode participant savings.
Could Employer Matching On Trump Accounts Become The Next Fiduciary Recruiting Perk (And Liability)?
With contributions via employer programs not beginning until July 4, 2026 (IRS Notice 2025-68), sponsors who move quickly have a compressed window to design, test, and communicate the benefit. That compression creates both opportunity and risk.
The Netflix Effect 401k retirement readiness problem may not come from bad markets, but from quiet disengagement. As automation pushes retirement saving into the background, readiness risks can grow unnoticed.
The S&P 500 looks diversified—until you see how few stocks actually drive the returns. As concentration rises, index construction itself is becoming a growing 401k fiduciary risk.
Viewed through that lens, a 401k Christmas wish list isn’t just about outcomes, but about predictability. A stable rulebook can make it easier to design, monitor, and maintain plans that work in practice as well as on paper.
Seasoned advisors caution plan sponsors not to confuse delegation with disappearance. Every fiduciary duty can be shared. None can be erased.
401k New Year Opportunities
The calendar flipped to 2026, and with it came a fresh crop of 401k new year opportunities. Will this be the year 403(b) plans finally shed legacy costs, SECURE 2.0 provisions hit their stride, and markets remind participants that risk never really sleeps?