New regulation under ERISA section 408(b)(2) is expected to be released in the fall of 2010 and take effect in 2011. One key consequence of these regulations is level pricing for financial advisers (FAs) who provide services to 401(k) plans.

It’s the unanswerable question every investor eyeing retirement, and his financial advisor, seek an answer to—How many years do I have to live? New genetic research may narrow the variety of possible answers to that question...

It can be difficult on a personal level to watch a client, whom you may have known for years, begin to lose his mental capacity. But if that client is the settlor of a revocable trust of which you are a trustee, the settlor's incompetence can...

For decades, the United States had a top marginal tax rate as high as 50, 70 and even 90 percent.1 As a matter of fact, for the past 50 years there have only been five years (1988 to 1992) when the top marginal tax rate was less than the current...

There is an alternative planning opportunity for clients who are intrigued by the benefit of tax-free growth of a Roth conversion, but who ultimately reject the strategy because of the income tax liability triggered on the full IRA balance at...

Some attorneys are working feverishly to get clients’ assets into a specialized trust before proposed federal legislation eliminates the provisions that have made it so popular as a means of significantly reducing taxes.

The retirement plan marketplace is experiencing an identity crisis of sorts. To help fix deficiencies in the 401(k) system, Congress passed the Pension Protection Act in 2006, which enacted sweeping legislative changes and set the stage for reform...