Benefits Blast

The Department of Labor’s (the Department) Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 84-14 (the QPAM Exemption) is the most widely utilized prohibited transaction relief by investment professionals who manage assets of ERISA plans and IRAs (collectively, ERISA Plans). The Department’s recent individual prohibited transaction exemption activity highlights a critical requirement for relying on the QPAM Exemption: monitoring criminal conduct of affiliates in the United States and abroad.

Investment professionals who manage the assets of certain employee benefit plans are subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA), and all the rules under ERISA governing prohibited transactions. One such prohibited transaction arises when an ERISA-governed plan or fund (a plan) engages in a transaction with a party who may be conflicted or has an interest with respect to that plan. However, as with any rule, there are available exceptions such as the QPAM Exemption described below.