07.29.24
Second Texas Federal Court Broadens Stay of DOL Retirement Security Rule
by: Alex Ortolani
A second federal court in Texas put a hold on the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Retirement Security Rule, expanding beyond an earlier stay to all of the rule’s exemptions and saying that plaintiffs are “virtually certain” to succeed in their claims against the regulator. An opinion issued under Federal Judge Reed C. O’Connor in the Northern District of Texas Fort Worth Division sided in part with the plaintiffs in American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) vs. DOL, ordering a stay on the so-called fiduciary rule with the argument that it did not need further court review. The rule, which had been scheduled to take effect September 23, requires “trusted investment advice providers” and financial institutions working with them to operate as fiduciaries in most cases when advising on qualified retirement plan design, annuity sales and individual retirement account rollovers. The ACLI suit was filed after a similar case was filed in the Eastern District of Texas by the Federation of Americans for Consumer Choice Inc., an advocacy group for independent insurance agents, along with other independent insurance agents. A judge granted the plaintiff’s request for a stay in that case the day prior, with US District Judge Jeremy Kernodle also writing that the plaintiffs are “likely to succeed” in their action.
Read the full article on PlanSponsor