Alter Ego Status

Posting by Larry Beebe, CPA

Is an employer’s intent to evade being treated as an alter ego to a contributing employer a required element of proving alter ego status?  This question was discussed in a December, 2009 article in the IFEBP’s Benefits and Compensation Legal Legislative Reporter.

The article stated that the “sixth circuit emphasizes that evidence of an intent to evade, when it presents itself, is a relevant factor in determining whether the alter ego doctrine is applicable, along with […]

A Flood of Epic Proportions

Posting by Larry Beebe, CPA

I had been trying to schedule a payroll audit for months.  The employer used every excuse possible to postpone.  The east coast had been pounded with heavy rain.  One rainy morning I was complaining to all who would listen that the employer in question would probably cancel again.  One of my “buddies” left the office and called me pretending to be the employer.  He said his office had been flooded and he had to postpone […]

Payroll Auditing Can be a Grind

Posting by Kurt Needles, CPA

Last week I was going out of state to work on an annual audit client.  Another client in the same town had a delinquency issue, so since I was already going to be there, I said I would do it. After all, it was only five guys for a short audit period.  How bad could it be?

Well, sometimes I forget what a tough job payroll auditing can be.  The owner’s wife was overbearing, and the […]

Audit Costs as Part of Fund’s Judgement

Posting by Andrew Staab

A recurring theme mentioned by Larry Beebe on trustee reluctance to engage in regular and routine payroll audits is COST (e.g., “It’s too expensive!” or “The cost does not justify the result.”).  My standard response to such comments is that audit costs are a recoverable expense under ERISA, specifically 29 U.S.C. §1132(g)(2).  Although the statute does not specifically say “audit costs,” it does include:

(D) reasonable attorney’s fees and costs of the action, to be paid by […]