News & Events
Employee Benefits Today - Issues and Problems in the Current Economic Environment: Series XX
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Please join us for our 20th annual Employee Benefits seminar that will focus on employee benefits claims and plans as well as current issues involving the Internal Revenue Service.
10/1/2008
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10/1/2008
8:00 AM
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1:15 PM
Joe C. Thompson Conference Center - Cityplace
2711 N. Haskell Avenue
Dallas, Texas
The seminar will again be complimentary and will retain the same unique format. The program will be held on Wednesday, October 1st, in the Joe C. Thompson Conference Center of Cityplace, 2711 N. Haskell Avenue, Dallas, Texas from 8:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Lunch will be served from 12:15 p.m. to 1:15 p.m.
Members of Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell LLP will serve as speakers. In addition, we have invited Loretta Dollar from the IRS to be our luncheon speaker.
Moderator: Stuart M. Bumpas
8:00 a.m. Registration, Continental Breakfast, Introduction
8:30 a.m. IRS Employee Plans Correction Program Update
The Internal Revenue Service has recently updated the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System ("EPCRS"), which allows plan sponsors to correct plan document and operational deficiencies. The recently updated version of the EPCRS procedures includes a number of changes which will allow a more streamlined approach to filing under EPCRS and expand the instances in which self correction will be available. This segment of our seminar will provide a detailed explanation of the updated procedure and practical advice on when and how to take advantage of the IRS's voluntary compliance programs.
Speaker: Phil Bush
9:15 a.m. Health and Welfare Plan Update
The discussion will focus on a number of current matters, including medical tourism, paying for “never events” or medical errors, realizing the elusive return on investment in wellness programs, on-site medical facilities, the potential impact on self-insured programs of possible Texas PPO registration legislation, and at least a passing review of the health plan proposals by the two Presidential candidates.
Speaker: Jan Newsom
10:00 a.m. Coffee Break
10:15 a.m. Employee Benefit Plans: Current Issues Involving Domestic Partners and Same-Sex Spouses
This presentation will focus on various questions relating to the participation of non-traditional couples in employee benefits, including –-
- What are employers required to do?
- What are employers permitted to do?
- How should benefit plans be drafted to reflect coverage for domestic partners and same-sex spouses? When, for example, should such coverage begin? When should it end?
- Are there any special income tax issues involved in providing benefits to domestic partners and same-sex spouses?
Speaker: Larry Hansen
11:00 a.m. Handling Employee Benefits Claims
This presentation will focus on issues arising in the employee benefit claims process. In particular, it will discuss the impact of recent Supreme Court cases on the standard of review of employee benefit claims and proper conduct for claim fiduciaries. It also will focus on the steps that employers should take to handle claim dispute and document claim denials. Finally, the presentation will discuss best practices for claim disputes from a litigation perspective.
Speakers: Edward A. Razim III, Carl Scherz
11:45 a.m. Questions and Answers
12:00 p.m. Lunch – Lakewood Room
12:45 p.m. Luncheon Presentation
Speaker: Loretta Dollar, Employee Plans Group Manager, Internal Revenue Service
1:15 p.m. Adjournment