Mark M. Brown

Mark advises major corporations, hospitals, investment companies and advisers on employee benefit plan terminations and partial terminations, benefit freezes, nondiscrimination and coverage testing issues, allocation of litigation proceeds, and determinations of benefit claims and appeals. 

Retirement Plan Design

Mark works with clients to design, establish, and amend qualified retirement plans. He is particularly experienced in developing cash balance and other defined benefit plans, in addition to 401(k), profit-sharing and money purchase plans. He also helps implement:

• Nonqualified deferred compensation plans
• Stock option plans
• Roth conversion features under 401(k) plans
• Lump-sum windows under defined benefit plans
• Termination of defined benefit and other plans

Compliance Advice

Mark advises on federal regulations associated with employer-administered benefit plans. He counsels on Internal Revenue Service (IRS) 409A compliance issues for nonqualified plans and reviews and amends cash balance and other hybrid plans for compliance with regulations. Mark helps clients correct operational and plan document failures under the IRS’s Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System and the Department of Labor’s Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program. He also assists in resolving issues regarding service crediting, distribution timing and benefit calculation.