Austin Anderson

Diligent counsel for all aspects of employee benefits

Austin Anderson advises private and public employers on all aspects of the design and maintenance of health and retirement plans and other employee benefits. He addresses regulatory and legislative requirements for a variety of clients, including:

• Corporations
• State and municipal retirement systems
• Tax-exempt entities

Austin gives clear, practical advice to help clients parse the complex laws that govern employee benefits. He prioritizes efficient and creative solutions that allow employers to attract and retain talent while complying with ever-changing rules.

• Advises employers on design, administration and termination of employee benefits, including health plans, retirement plans, nonqualified deferred compensation, fringe benefits, cafeteria plans, wrap plans and health reimbursement arrangements.
• Helps employers navigate the Internal Revenue Code, ERISA, PPACA, MHPAEA, ADA, HIPAA, COBRA and USERRA for all types of plans.
• Represents and defends employers in their interactions with the Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services.
• Advises plan sponsors, committees and trustees on their fiduciary obligations and helps them develop a plan governance structure that simplifies administration and mitigates potential fiduciary exposure.
• Assists with audits, compliance filings, plan corrections, PLR applications and plan terminations.
• Reviews service provider agreements, trust agreements and business associate agreements.

• Achieved retraction of more than $100 million of proposed Employer Shared Responsibility Payments for clients.
• Assisted with $10 billion-plus transaction involving contribution of asset to qualified trust.
• Achieved retraction of over 90 percent of penalties assessed by Department of Labor during audit of client’s retirement plans.
• Assisted with defense of global pharmaceutical company against claims under Medicare Secondary Payer Act.
• Advised state government on application of unclaimed property laws and reporting requirements to health plan assets.
• Designed and conducted comparative analysis of health benefits required under the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act.