Happily Ever After? – Investment Funds that Live with ERISA, for Better and for Worse

ERISA Fiduciary Law - Second Edition, 2016 Supplement, S. Serota, A. Oringer, eds., BNA Books, 2016

New York University Review of Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation, A. Lurie, ed., 2012

Hofstra Univ. Legal Studies Research Paper No. 12-04 (also serialized in The Hedge Fund Law Report (2014))

43 Pages Posted: 27 Jan 2012 Last revised: 28 Jun 2023

See all articles by Andrew L. Oringer

Andrew L. Oringer

The Wagner Law Group; Fordham Law School; Hofstra University - Maurice A. Deane School of Law

Date Written: June 30, 2022

Abstract

ERISA can be extremely complex at times, sometimes even seeming to operate counterintuitively in an attempt to achieve its protective goals. There may have been a time when various investment professionals commonly disdained taking investment from pension plans subject to ERISA. Only as investment capital has become increasingly concentrated in pension plans have investment professionals more broadly realized that dealing with ERISA might be necessary or even preferable. At the same time, various collective, commingled and other pooled investment strategies have proliferated and have become increasingly entrenched in the market. An emerging trend has developed for multiple layers of collective investing, often with the use of a “fund of funds” to invest in still other downstream collective vehicles. The rise of collective investing, together with a greater appreciation of the value of managing ERISA plan assets, has prompted managers to accept ERISA plan investments even if ERISA-related compliance obligations would be triggered. These trends focus attention on how the various rules under ERISA are brought to bear when a fund is deemed under the so-called “plan assets” regulation of the U.S. Department of Labor and ERISA Section 3(42). This discussion will address the particular application of ERISA’s fiduciary rules to multi-investor funds actively managed by a third-party registered investment adviser operated from the outset to hold plan assets and thereby be subject to ERISA.

Suggested Citation

Oringer, Andrew L., Happily Ever After? – Investment Funds that Live with ERISA, for Better and for Worse (June 30, 2022). ERISA Fiduciary Law - Second Edition, 2016 Supplement, S. Serota, A. Oringer, eds., BNA Books, 2016, New York University Review of Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation, A. Lurie, ed., 2012, Hofstra Univ. Legal Studies Research Paper No. 12-04 (also serialized in The Hedge Fund Law Report (2014)), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1992486

Andrew L. Oringer (Contact Author)

The Wagner Law Group

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New York, NY 10017-2856
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1-212-540-4579 (Phone)

Fordham Law School ( email )

150 West 62 Street
New York, NY 10023
United States

Hofstra University - Maurice A. Deane School of Law ( email )

121 Hofstra University
Hempstead, NY 11549
United States

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