A BASIC GUIDE TO ERISA BENEFITS CLAIMS FOR NON-ERISA LAWYERS
What is ERISA?
“ERISA” is an acronym standing for the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 which went into effect on January 1, 1975. The statute was designed to protect employee pensions and other employee benefits. 29 U.S.C. §1001 et seq.
The statute changed the landscape of employee benefits law by requiring that all benefit plans be regulated by the federal statute instead the laws of the 50 states. ERISA is comprised of four titles: Title I regulates the dissemination of information to the plan participants. Title II covers the tax laws related to employee benefits. Title III covers the administrative and legal enforcement provision of ERISA. Title IV created the Pension Benefit Guaranty Company (PBGC), an insurance program that provides insurance coverage for certain types of pension plans acts somewhat like the FDIC, or Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.