Overview
Dates: October 2021
Location: Greenwich, Connecticut
The Forum is a private gathering of 40 in-house and outside counsel who are well-versed in complex ERISA matters, personally selected from major firms and financial institutions from across the country, to meet and discuss the most pressing issues and questions they face today.
Using candid, peer-driven discussion, this Forum explores key trends and developments in fiduciary and prohibited transaction compliance and enforcement, to discern best practices and strategies for specialists in this field.
2021 Steering Committee
This advisory group of leading ERISA counsel drafted the Agenda and personally nominated all invitees to the Forum.
Committee Chair
Committee Members
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Christina Anstett ERISA Attorney Equitable New York, NY
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Sarah N. Lowe Member Frost Brown Todd LLC Nashville, TN
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Richard Matta Principal Groom Law Group, Chartered Washington, D.C.
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Andrew L. Oringer Partner Dechert LLP New York, NY
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William E. Ryan President and Chief Fiduciary Officer Independent Fiduciary New York, NY
Mr. Ryan is President and Chief Fiduciary Officer of Newport Trust Company, and served as President and Chief Fiduciary Officer of Evercore Trust Company, N.A., prior to the acquisition of Evercore Trust’s institutional trustee and independent fiduciary business by Newport Trust in 2017. Prior to Evercore Trust, Mr. Ryan was with Morgan Stanley, where he was an Executive Director in the Legal and Compliance Division and Head of ERISA Law, responsible for coordinating ERISA and qualified tax issues for Morgan Stanley’s Institutional Securities Group (Institutional Brokerage), Morgan Stanley Investment Management (Asset Management), and Morgan Stanley Smith Barney (Retail Brokerage). Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, Mr. Ryan was the Chief ERISA/Benefits Counsel for Prudential Financial, Inc. from 1995 through 2004, handling ERISA-related HR, compensation and product issues for Prudential Insurance, and was in private practice in New York from 1987 through 1995, specializing in ERISA issues. On behalf of various industry groups, Mr. Ryan has met with and testified before the U.S. Department of Labor, the Treasury Department, the White House, and various state regulators on fiduciary and other retirement issues. He has also served on various industry groups, including the SIFMA Retirement Committee (where he served as co-chair from 2010-2013). Mr. Ryan holds an A.B. Degree in History from Princeton University in 1984, a J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1987 (where he was an editor of the Stanford Law Review), and a Masters in Taxation (LL.M.) from New York University School of Law in 1995.
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Karen W. Scheffler Associate General Counsel and Director Bank of America New York, NY
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John Schuch Associate General Counsel Bank of America New York, NY
John W. Schuch is a Director and AssociateGeneral Counsel at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Mr. Schuch joined the Bank in 2011 and is the lead ERISA Counsel for its Global Banking and Markets division. Mr. Schuch is responsible for advising the Bank with respect to ERISA and other pension related rules in connection with its global institutional banking, custody, broker-dealer, and trading platforms.
Prior to joining the Legal Department of Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Mr. Schuch spent several years in the legal department at another major financial institution advising on ERISA legal issues and in ERISA/employee benefits/executive compensation groups at two major law firms.
Mr. Schuch received a J.D., summa cum laude, from Brooklyn Law School in 2002 and a B.S. from Binghamton University in 1998.
Forum Director
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Emma Phillips Senior Forum Director Cambridge Forums Toronto, ON ephillips@cambridgeforums.com M: +1 437 216 3119
With over 25 years of experience, Emma is a dedicated experiential marketing leader with the ability to manage the entire project lifecycle, from conception and budgeting to execution and post-event analysis. Emma has demonstrated success in planning and orchestrating high-visibility events across target markets including clients, stakeholders, executives, and employees. Emma’s areas of expertise include managing the customer experience, client retention, and relationship management, meeting logistics, organization and execution as well as cost and budget control, contract negotiations and vendor relations.
The Forum offers a private environment for leading practitioners to gain guidance from peers on unprecedented and grey areas in potential fiduciary conflicts and prohibited transactions while building diverse and valuable connections from across the nation.
"The key, valuable distinction is the Forum’s participatory format. Through the participation of everyone, we learned so much more about current developments and our colleagues’ and clients’ approaches to the most difficult issues of the day."
Noah A. Levine Partner Wilmer Culter Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP"I would recommend this program to colleagues practicing in regulatory compliance and enforcement because it gives you the inside perspective of leading attorneys in the industry."
Elizabeth A. Corbett Counsel Alston & Bird LLP"Great format. Informative but also excellent opportunities for networking – which is even more important."
Darrell S. Cafasso Partner Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
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Senior Forum Director