Greg is a member of Spencer Fane's Executive Committee and a partner in the Overland Park, Kansas office. He practices in the firm’s Employee Benefits Group and is Chair of its ERISA Litigation Group. For nearly 20 years Greg’s practice has focused exclusively on ERISA and other laws governing employee benefits, including matters affecting pension, profit sharing, ESOP, 401(k), executive compensation, and welfare plans. He regularly counsels clients of all sizes – including multiemployer “Taft-Hartley” funds, Fortune 100 corporations, small privately-held employers, and boards of directors – on benefits issues such as executive deferred compensation, plan design and administration, and fiduciary compliance.
Experience:
- Greg developed a sophisticated plan governance structure for the qualified plans of a Fortune 100 publicly-traded company so as to reduce the risk of ERISA fiduciary liability for its board of directors and officers.
- Coordinating the efforts of other Benefits Group attorneys, Greg conducted a comprehensive review and analysis of the fiduciary processes and procedures used by three multiemployer benefit funds with over $7 billion in assets.
- Shortly after regulatory changes allowed it, Greg helped a publicly-traded company add an ESOP component to its traditional 401(k) plan, allowing the company to claim additional corporate income tax deductions, at the same time that plan participants were given the option of receiving cash distributions of dividends paid on company stock held in the plan.
- Greg recently served as lead defense counsel in the successful defense of a lawsuit challenging the denial of COBRA coverage, establishing new, employer-friendly precedent in the process. Maloney v. Ameristar Casinos, No. 4:09-cv-00673 (W.D. Mo. 3/9/2010).
- During the spring of 2010 Greg guided two clients to early, advantageous settlements of disputes involving 401(k) plan fees and subrogation matters.
- Greg currently advises a number of 401(k) plan service providers and plan sponsors in connection with 401(k) "excessive fee" issues.
- As Chair of Spencer Fane’s ERISA Litigation Group, Greg successfully defeated a class action breach of fiduciary duty claim that was brought against a Fortune 20 client arising out of the Enron bankruptcy, convincing the Federal Court to dismiss the matter before discovery was authorized. Geiler v. Jones, 37 EBC 1018, 2006 Westlaw 407683 (D. Neb. Feb. 2, 2006).
- Greg has advised clients with 401(k) plans that hold company stock about their fiduciary risks and obligations in light of recent stock-drop litigation.
- Representing a large 401(k) plan sponsor and its administrative committee in a dispute with service providers following a plan conversion, Greg briefed, argued, and successfully defeated motions to dismiss his clients’ claims filed by the defendants on ERISA preemption grounds, ultimately resulting in a favorable settlement of the claims. Weyerhaeuser v. MFS Retirement Services, No. C03-2968P (W.D. Wash. 2004).
Presentations and Speaking Engagements:
- A nationally recognized authority on retirement plan fee issues, Greg has given over 20 presentations on fee practices and fee litigation.
- At the 2009 Midyear Meeting of the ABA's Tax Section, Greg spoke at the Employee Benefits Committee's plenary session on "Practical Lessons from Recent Litigation."
- In the Fall of 2008 Greg was invited to speak to the Tulsa, Oklahoma bar association's employee benefits committee on retirement plan fee litigation and service provider disclosures.
- Greg was invited to speak to clients of JP Morgan Retirement Plan Services at JPM’s 2006 client conference. He discussed the new rules under Tax Code Section 409A that govern nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements, highlighting planning opportunities that sponsors of such arrangements should consider before the end of the year.
- Greg has given presentations to retirement plan professionals of numerous national service providers concerning developments in the 401(k) fee cases.