{"id":2959,"date":"2026-01-19T19:46:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-19T19:46:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/?page_id=2959"},"modified":"2026-02-06T22:26:04","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T22:26:04","slug":"reducing-500000-in-erisa-fines-to-1500","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/case-studies\/reducing-500000-in-erisa-fines-to-1500\/","title":{"rendered":"Reducing $500,000 in ERISA Fines to $1,500"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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This case study highlights how strategic compliance review and timely corrective action reduced nearly $500,000 in ERISA penalties to just $1,500, safeguarding a law firm\u2019s 401(k) plan and mitigating regulatory risk.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Home<\/div><\/a><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Reducing $500,000 in ERISA Fines to $1,500<\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Reducing $500,000 in ERISA Fines to $1,500<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Client: A Law Firm<\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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A Law Firm, a professional services entity sponsoring a 401(k) retirement plan, fell behind on required Form 5500 filings, exposing it to nearly $500,000 in ERISA penalties from the DOL. The plan provider had underestimated the risks of late submissions, failing to advise on mitigation options. Hall Benefits Law (HBL) partner Samuel Krause reviewed the documentation, identified a missed opportunity to enroll in the DOL’s Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program (DFVCP) via a simple checkbox, and refiled the forms to qualify. This reduced the fines to $1,500, with the matter ongoing as of the latest update.<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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THE CHALLENGE<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Late Form 5500 filings triggered substantial DOL penalties, compounded by the plan provider’s misjudgment in dismissing the risks. Without correction, the firm faced a $500,000 liability, potential reputational damage, and disruptions to its retirement plan operations as a fiduciary.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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THE TURNING POINT\n<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Upon discovering the oversight, A Law Firm sought ERISA expertise to remediate the filings and minimize penalties. Standard advice from the provider proved inadequate, prompting HBL’s engagement to explore compliance programs and execute a targeted fix.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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THE SOLUTION<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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HBL partner Samuel Krause examined the Forms 5500 and noted the absence of the DFVCP election checkbox. He refiled the documents to enroll in the program, which caps penalties for eligible delinquent filers, directly addressing the compliance gap and leveraging DOL relief mechanisms.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tOur Results\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>
$498,500 in Fines Reduced<\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tPenalty Reduction\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\t\t\t\t
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Slashed $500,000 in potential fines to $1,500 through DFVCP enrollment.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tCompliance Restored\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\t\t\t\t
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Corrected late filings, preserving the 401(k) plan's qualified status and fiduciary integrity.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tProvider Oversight Corrected\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\t\t\t\t
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Highlighted and rectified the plan provider's misunderstanding, preventing future risks.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tOngoing Resolution\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\t\t\t\t
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Positioned the firm for final penalty abatement, with proceedings continuing toward closure.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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WHY IT MATTERS<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Late ERISA filings can impose crippling fines on professional firms, but simple oversights like program elections offer powerful relief. This case emphasizes the value of specialized review to uncover mitigation paths, ensuring compliance and protecting assets in retirement plan administration.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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ABOUT HBL\n<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Hall Benefits Law (HBL) is a boutique ERISA and employee benefits law firm helping employers design and defend retirement and health plans. With offices nationwide, HBL advises on M&A benefits, ESOPs, executive compensation, and compliance, and drives savings and transparency through TPA and PBM negotiations. Firm clients have realized over $400MM+ in penalty abatements and multimillion-dollar annual plan savings.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This case study highlights how strategic compliance review and timely corrective action reduced nearly $500,000 in ERISA penalties to just $1,500, safeguarding a law firm\u2019s 401(k) plan and mitigating regulatory risk. Home \/ Reducing $500,000 in ERISA Fines to $1,500 Client: A Law Firm A Law Firm, a professional services entity sponsoring a 401(k) retirement […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1951,"parent":1311,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2959","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2959","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2959"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2959\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3275,"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2959\/revisions\/3275"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1311"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1951"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fincmo.com\/hbl_staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2959"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}