Termination of employment is a distribution event under many retirement plans, and particularly under individual account defined contribution plans. But what does it mean to terminate employment?  Is there such a thing as a “sham” termination?   It’s an important question for plans sponsors to consider before distributing a retirement benefit following the plan participant’s departure, as a distribution attributable to a termination that is not bona fide could be considered a plan disqualification defect, putting the plan’s tax-qualified status at risk.  So how does a plan sponsor determine whether there was a “termination of employment” that constitutes a true distribution event? Does the possibility of being rehired put a distribution made on account of a prior termination of employment from that employer at risk?  Grab your cup of coffee and tune in to hear Richard and Sarah chat with Seyfarth Partner Christina Cerasale about these pressing questions and more!

Episode 7: Sham Terminations - Gone But Not Forgotten

Last year on the Policy Matters podcast, the team explored the fundamentals of non-compete agreements and examined what the adoption of the FTC’s proposed non-compete rule could mean for employers. Today, host Leon Rodriguez is joined by Daniel Hart and Dawn Mertineit to discuss the groundbreaking rule set to shake up non-compete agreements in the workplace, slated for enforcement starting September 4, 2024. Join the speakers as they unpack the rule's broad implications, mounting legal challenges it faces, and constitutional uncertainties looming over its implementation.

Episode 42: Deciphering the FTC's Non-Compete Overhaul

Our guest today is a prolific connector and skilled executive coach in the legal industry. David Cowen is the founder and president of The Cowen Group and founder of the Summit on Legal Innovation and Disruption (SOLID). David started in staffing and recruiting, where he learned more about the art of making connections. Years later, as the demand for litigation support and eDiscovery talent grew, David pivoted toward the legal industry as a subject matter expert in building office legal support and technology teams. He ultimately founded The Cowen Group, which became the nation's leading search firm in staffing and recruiting senior legal leaders and next generation legal technologists. Over time, the firm has transitioned to the events space, hosting legal events on numerous topics such as legal innovation, legal operations, and eDiscovery. Among these many events is SOLID, a global series which focuses on innovation and the practice of law. These working groups bring together the most innovative thinkers and practitioners to take deep dives together into the hottest issues in the industry (As a disclaimer, Seyfarth is a supporter and host of many of the SOLID conferences.). Additionally, David writes extensively on managing and developing careers, “the war for talent,” and the motivations behind investments in people, process, and technology.

In today's conversation, David discusses why he founded SOLID, how he ended up in the legal industry, how he has kept up with client demands, and the importance of asking people for favors.

David Cowen

Amidst a challenging office market and tempered growth in the industrial and life sciences sectors, the retail landscape stands resilient. As retailers, owners, developers, brokers, and other industry professionals gather for the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) annual conference in Las Vegas, anticipation grows for revelations on the future trajectory of retail in 2024 and beyond.

In this episode, Greg Covey, senior managing director at Newmark, joins Eric Greenberg and James O’Brien to discuss the current state of retail, observed trends, and more.

Retail Roulette: Betting on the Future at ICSC Vegas

Today we welcome a true pioneer and one of the first legal operations professionals in the industry, Connie Brenton. Connie is CEO and founder of LegalOps.com—a community bringing together the legal ecosystem to drive competitive advantage. She has over 20 years of expertise and innovation experience in the industry, building community, and driving leadership. Connie started her legal operations career at the enterprise software company Sun Microsystems. She then launched the legal operations functions at the companies Oracle and NetApp. Connie also founded CLOC (Corporate Legal Operations Consortium) and was CEO of the organization. CLOC is one of the organizations under Connie’s leadership that defined legal operations as we now know it. Additionally, she co-authored the book Running Legal Like a Business with Susan Lambreth, a previous guest on the podcast. As a result of her work, Connie has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from American Lawyer Media.

In today's discussion, Connie talks about her decision to start LegalOps.com, what it means to run legal "like a business," the qualities necessary to be part of a legal ops team, and community-building in a hybrid world.

Connie Brenton

Our guest today is Stephen Allen, a leading market expert and innovator in the legal world. Among his many roles, Stephen is EMEA Lead at Lotis Blue Consulting, which utilizes data and behavioral science to help companies with their growth and transformation. Stephen is also Chief Scout at Trampelpfad, which delivers innovative, established paths to success for law firms and legal departments. He has worked in legal services for over 25 years, having started as a lawyer in both private practice and in-house communities. He has played significant innovation roles at various organizations where he has worked. At Hogan Lovells, Stephen built an alternative delivery and innovation capability, and launched complementary businesses in financial services consulting and technology. He later joined Elevate, where he worked with customers to define their roles, and he designed market-leading solutions to business-of-law problems faced by law departments and law firms.

In our conversation, Stephen discusses Trampelpfad—the business and the English translation of the word, why he likes working with lawyers, the lessons he learned from the telecom industry, and the commonalities and differences between the organizations where he has worked.

Stephen Allen

Today we're joined by Carolyn Elefant, a change-maker in energy and environmental justice law specifically, as well as the legal profession generally. Carolyn is an attorney and an author, blogger, and legal innovation influencer at MyShingle.com. She started as a lawyer at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). After working in a law firm for a few years, she took the leap into starting her own practice. In her energy and environmental justice work, Carolyn helps innovative alternative energy companies navigate the FERC, state commissions, and energy markets. She also defends landowners and communities from pipeline infrastructure by helping them challenge adverse rulings and change laws. Nearly two decades ago, Carolyn co-founded the Ocean Renewable Energy Coalition, which has since merged with the National Hydropower Association. This organization has helped draft and implement the laws that govern offshore wind and wave energy today, and has lobbied for hundreds of millions of dollars in research and development for the industry. In addition, Carolyn helps other lawyers venture into solo practice—sharing her thoughts and experiences through her award-winning blog, MyShingle.com, and her book, Solo by Choice.

In our conversation, Carolyn discusses the surprising reason she chose to attend law school, starting a solo practice, how she approaches legal technology, and her work in energy and environmental justice law.

Carolyn Elefant

In this week’s episode, we speak with Steve Harmon, chief operating officer and general counsel at Elevate, a company that provides software and services for the intersection of business and law. Like many of our guests, Steve has had an unconventional—but truly fascinating—career path. While attending undergrad at BYU, he and some of his classmates founded a company, prompting him to earn a business degree and attend law school so that he could serve as the patent lawyer on the team. He would go on to leverage his combined legal and business knowledge throughout his career. Before joining Elevate, he worked at Cisco Systems for almost 20 years in various functions, where he and his team built one of the most innovative legal departments in the world. Steve was also a co-founder and board member of the Corporate Legal Operations Consortium (CLOC). Although he is no longer on the board, he remains committed to its mission to promote collaboration among legal ops professionals.

We had so much to discuss with Steve that we split the conversation into two parts. In the first half of our chat, he talks about how he learned to be an in-house lawyer, the question every lawyer should ask their clients, his proudest accomplishment at Cisco, and his initial skepticism of having a legal ops role.

We will be taking a break next week, but we will return on June 26 for part two of the conversation, where we explore Steve’s work at Elevate, the impact of legal technology, and other fascinating topics.

Steve Harmon, Pt. I

Special purpose entities (SPEs) are frequently employed in commercial real estate transactions to mitigate bankruptcy risks associated with borrowers or their properties. To qualify as bankruptcy remote, these entities must meet specific requirements, such as appointing "independent directors" and "springing members." With the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) now in effect, mandating the disclosure of beneficial owners, SPEs must ensure compliance to avoid severe penalties for non-reporting or false reporting.

In this episode, Cameron Weil and Dustin Lauermann join Jay Wardlaw to explore the intersection of the CTA and SPEs and discuss how those affected can ensure compliance.

SPE-lling It Out – Special Purpose Entities and the Corporate Transparency Act

Grab your coffee, settle in, and join us for a conversation on all things employee benefits and executive compensation. Each episode will provide brief and lively discussions of questions, issues, and concerns that our EB clients and colleagues encounter on a daily basis or wrestle with from time-to-time. Our conversations will be informed by you, our clients and friends, and reflect the everyday questions asked of us in our role as employee benefits counsel to large and small businesses in a variety of sectors, including retail, manufacturing, technology, health and hospital systems, and higher education, to name a few. In each episode, our hosts, Richard Schwartz and Sarah Touzalin, will interview a guest with expertise in the employee benefits world.

Episode 7: Sham Terminations - Gone But Not Forgotten

Coffee Talk With Benefits

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