Photo of Kellie M. Thomas

Kellie M. Thomas is co-leader of the firm’s Employee Benefits practice group. Her goal with every client is to provide practical and straightforward advice that breaks down and makes accessible the myriad issues and considerations arising under ERISA, the Internal Revenue Code (including Sections 280G, 401(k), 403(b), 409A and 457(b) and (f)), the Affordable Care Act, COBRA, HIPAA, and the various other federal and state laws and regulations affecting benefit plans.

As part of her day to day advice and counsel work, Kellie regularly reviews, drafts and amends self- and fully-insured health and welfare plans; cafeteria plans; qualified and non-qualified retirement plans; employment, consulting, severance and change in control agreements; and stock option and other equity-based compensation plans. She drafts and prepares submissions under the Internal Revenue Service’s Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System and the Department of Labor’s Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program, and reviews and qualifies proposed Qualified Domestic Relations Orders and Qualified Medical Child Support Orders. Kellie also counsels on corporate governance and fiduciary matters, including the structure and duties of retirement and benefit plan committees.

Kellie also has extensive experience advising on all benefits-related aspects of corporate transactions, from due diligence and transaction document negotiations to benefits integration following a closing. She particularly enjoys building relationships during the transaction process that continue after the deal is done.

As employers with 50 or more full-time (or full-time equivalent) employees are well aware, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (”ACA”) requires annual submission of Forms 1094-C and 1095-C with the Internal Revenue Service, and distribution of Forms 1095-C.  These submissions and distributions are generally due:

 Furnishing of Forms 1095-C to employees: January 31

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) is the latest federal COVID-19 relief bill, which the President signed into law on Thursday, March 11, 2021. ARPA includes new COBRA continuation coverage election, notice, and subsidy requirements; pension plan funding relief; and some cost-saving benefit opportunities employees may be able to leverage.  Some of these

We previously wrote about the Department of Labor’s proposed expansion of its safe harbor for electronic delivery of certain retirement plan disclosures required under ERISA.  The wait is finally over, with publication of the final rule (the “New Rule”) helped along by the DOL’s desire to alleviate some of the “disclosure-related problems being reported by