2023 NCEO Annual Employee Ownership Conference

Ted Becker is co-head of McDermott Will & Schulte’s ERISA Litigation practice and a Fellow of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel.  He focuses his practice on litigation under ERISA and related federal and state actions, and defense of government investigations and audits relating to employee benefit, health and welfare, and retirement plans brought by the US Department of Labor, the Internal Revenue Service, and the US Department of Justice. He is a leading voice and nationally recognized practitioner in this complex practice area.

He has represented public and private companies that sponsor employee benefit, health and welfare, and retirement plans governed by ERISA, and their directors and officers and plan fiduciaries, as well as service providers to ERISA plans and plan sponsors. He has extensive experience in Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) and has defended some of the highest profile lawsuits involving ESOPs, helping to define the landscape of the evolving law relating to ESOPs.

Ted has a considerable experience in trial and appeals courts, including arguing before the United States Supreme Court and several United States Circuit Courts of Appeals. He also has represented clients in arbitration proceedings. He has represented clients across the full spectrum of litigation, from avoidance, dispute resolution and pre-litigation planning, through dispositive motions, discovery, trial and appeal.

Ted’s clients include a number of Fortune 500 companies. He represents both public and private organizations, as well as non-profit organizations.

J. Christian (Chris) Nemeth is a Chambers-ranked litigation partner who counsels clients on complex ERISA and commercial litigation matters. He co-heads McDermott Will & Schulte's nationwide ERISA litigation practice and leads the firm's Litigation Practice Group in Miami.

Chris works closely with the firm’s employee benefits lawyers on all types of ERISA litigation matters, Department of Labor investigations, and similar issues. He maintains an active commercial practice as well, specializing in financial and banking cases, business torts, and breach of contract actions.

Chris represents clients in courts at the state and federal levels across the country and has successfully tried cases involving a wide range of matters. He also arbitrates cases in domestic and international forums.

Chris has extensive appellate experience including successful appeals before the Seventh, Ninth, and Tenth US Circuit Courts and the Illinois Court of Appeals.

Allison Wilkerson focuses her practice on employee benefits matters. She has extensive experience handling issues pertaining to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs).

With respect to ERISA, Allison focuses on compliance issues and the Internal Revenue Code related to employee benefits, including qualified plans, nonqualified plans, and executive and deferred compensation. While advising employers on the design, implementation and administration of tax-qualified retirement plans and nonqualified retirement plans, Allison provides relevant guidance as to administrative and operational matters, and assists clients with various benefit plan correction programs offered by the Department of Labor (DOL) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Allison also has advised employers with respect to issues raised in connection with corporate mergers, acquisitions and divestitures as they relate to the various benefit plans maintained by the affected corporate entity or entities.

Allison focuses her ESOP practice on the design and implementation of ESOP transactions and provides ongoing legal counsel to ESOP-owned companies. She has been involved in hundreds of transactions, including leveraged buyouts, mergers, acquisitions, and the structuring and financing of ESOPs using private equity. She has advised employers on the implementation of nonqualified plans and executive compensation arrangements that complement the employee ownership structure and culture inherent in an ESOP-owned company. Allison also represents independent fiduciaries in their role as purchaser in an ESOP transaction as to their legal duties with respect to their representation of ESOP participants and beneficiaries.

Allison writes and speaks frequently on ERISA and ESOP issues.