What do the changes in leadership and policy at the US Department of Justice, the SEC and other federal agencies under the Trump Administration mean for in-house counsel and corporate enforcement? Please join A. Marisa Chun, head of litigation for McDermott’s San Francisco Bay Area office and former DOJ senior official and prosecutor, and other industry experts at the Bay Area Ethics & Compliance Association’s (BECA) quarterly meeting.

Andrew Liazos hosted two video webcasts entitled, “409A Gets Scarier: Reactions to the New 409A Proposed Regulations” and “Quick Hit: State-Run Retirement Plans – What Labor Allowed” at The Year In Employee Benefits 2017.

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Partners Maureen O’Brien and Todd A. Solomon, will prepare counsel representing private equity funds to meet fiduciary obligations under ERISA that apply to fund managers who are responsible for investing the assets of a fund that holds ERISA plan assets. The panel will particularly focus on the duty to avoid prohibited transactions. The program will cover implications of the DOL fiduciary rule for fund managers as well as the impact on private equity firms of the Sun Capital ruling triggering withdrawal liability for a portfolio company’s union pension obligations.

The panel will review these and other key issues:

• What fiduciary duties does ERISA impose on private equity managers who invest fund assets that hold ERISA plan assets?
• How can fund managers take advantage of the exceptions to the ERISA prohibited transactions obligation?
• How does the DOL’s fiduciary duty rule apply to private equity fund managers?
• What are the implications of the Sun Capital ruling on private equity funds and their portfolio companies?

Peter Faber will be speaking on the topic of “New Year, New Federal Tax Changes, New State Impacts: How Will President Trump’s Tax Reform Proposals Impact State Income/Franchise Taxes if Enacted.”

In this session you will learn details of the federal income tax proposals being put forth by President Trump and Congressional-proposed alternatives, and how these proposals will impact state business taxes if enacted. Additionally, the impact of the proposed interest expense deductibility on the recently promulgated IRC Section 385 Regulations, and resulting consequences to state taxation will also be addressed.

William Díaz will lead the roundtable discussion “Navigating the Antitrust Implications of Standard-Essential Patents (SEPs).”

Dr. Henrik Holzapfel spoke on “Opportunities and Limits of Patent Law for the Protection of Manufacturing Processes.”

Emily Rickard will present Part 3 of 4 “New Tax Practitioners Tax Series: Back-to-Basics: Introduction to Employee Benefits” at the DC Bar.

Michael Wilder will be presenting on consolidated tax return regulations.

David Diaz and Emily Rickard will present “401(k) Investment Menu Options: Stable Value Funds vs. Money Market Funds – On-Demand” at the Clear Law Institute.

Justice Robert J. Cordy discusses legal decisions, highlights and what the future holds.

Recently retired Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Justice Robert J. Cordy joins Pioneer Institute to engage in conversation with his former clerks to discuss a range of topics, including insights on how the Court made decisions behind-the-scenes during the Justice’s 15-year tenure, legal highlights of the Court during that period and what the Justice believes the future holds for the Court given its historic transformation under the administration of Governor Charlie Baker.

An audience question-and-answer opportunity will follow the discussion.