Overview
David Cohen is speaking at Practising Law Institute’s (PLI) ERISA Plan Investments in the Financial Markets 2026: The Fundamentals on March 6, 2026, in New York, NY.
ERISA plans are major investors in a constantly evolving financial marketplace. Both financial firms designing and selling financial products, and plans purchasing financial products need to understand the inner workings of the products in order to analyze them under ERISA and ensure compliance. This course provides an introductory look at various financial instruments and investment vehicles, and the ERISA issues that arise in connection with them. By focusing on different common plan investments, our expert panels will explore the interaction between ERISA and how various financial products and investment funds actually work.
After attending this program, participants will be able to:
- Describe the ERISA provisions that impact employee benefit plan investments and related current developments
- Identify issues arising under ERISA in connection with employee benefit investors and various financial instruments, including derivatives and virtual currencies
- Differentiate among the various commingled investment vehicles structures (e.g.,VCOC, REOC, insurance company products and bank collective trust funds)
David will speak at the following session:
ERISA Structuring Considerations for Commingled Investment Vehicles
March 6, 2026
1:45 – 3:15 pm (EST)
Speaker: David Cohen
This panel will review the basic ERISA rules relating to forming and operating different types of commingled funds (e.g., alternative funds, hedge funds, open-ended funds) that will have benefit plan investors. After attending this session, participants will be able to:
- Evaluate what ERISA “plan asset” exceptions are commonly applicable to different types of commingled vehicles
- Identify the different alternatives for structuring commingled funds to avoid ERISA “plan assets” status (e.g., VCOC, REOC), or ERISA fiduciary duties and responsibilities (e.g., hardwiring)
- Identify the basic VCOC and REOC requirements
- Discuss compliance considerations applicable to forming and operating “plan asset” funds
HRCI/SHRM credit for Human Resources Professionals