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3(16) Fiduciary Service and Why You Should Care

Summary:
Some expert third party administration providers and other plan consultants offer ERISA 3(16) services. Under this arrangement, you can outsource the plan fiduciary role, limit your liability and risk, and reduce time spent overseeing ongoing operations of the plan.

  • Post date July 1, 2021
3(16) Fiduciary Service and Why You Should Care

People who exercise control and authority over the management of a retirement plan’s assets are fiduciaries. So are professionals who provide investment advice with respect to those assets. As a company owner or executive, in most cases you also play an investment fiduciary role unless you partially or fully outsource that function to an investment professional.

What you may not recognize is that you may likely also wear another important fiduciary hat based on your control and authority over the administration of the plan. The named plan administrator is responsible for many things including:

  • Making sure eligibility is determined correctly,
  • Making sure that a number of required notices and mailings go out every year,
  • Making sure that plan-related payroll is properly processed and more.

You are also responsible for overseeing the performance of service providers to the plan. As you understand your fiduciary role better, you may find you don’t have the knowledge, or the experience, or comfort in performing in this capacity.

That’s why some expert third party administration providers and other plan consultants offer ERISA 3(16) services. Under this arrangement, you can outsource the plan fiduciary role and limit your liability and risk, as well as reduce your time and effort in managing the ongoing operations of the plan.

We can introduce you to the opportunity of a 3(16) fiduciary outsourcing relationship.

Talk to us to learn more about your fiduciary outsourcing options and let us guide you to a solution you can rely on and that will free you to focus more on your business.

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