Cadillac Plan Excise Tax Under the ACA. We substantially updated and expanded this resource to reflect IRS guidance (February 2015) on potential approaches for several key issues involving Cadillac Plan excise tax compliance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) (26 U.S.C. § 4980I). Among other things, the IRS guidance addresses the definition of applicable coverage for excise tax purposes and determining the cost of applicable coverage. For additional background, see our related legal update (February 2015) on the new IRS guidance, IRS Cadillac Tax Rules Highlight Need for COBRA Guidance and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Toolkit.

COBRA's Gross Misconduct Exception. Under COBRA, an employee's termination for gross misconduct is not a qualifying event for which the employee must be allowed to elect COBRA continuation coverage. Unfortunately, gross misconduct is not defined under COBRA or its implementing regulations. This Practice Note, which was added to our Health and Welfare Plans topic in Q1 2015, analyzes court cases addressing the scope of COBRA's gross misconduct exception and the implications for employers.

ERISA Litigation: Attorney's Fees. This entirely new Practice Note addresses the availability of attorney's fees in ERISA litigation, including significant changes affecting ERISA attorney's fee determinations under the Supreme Court's decision in Hardt v. Reliance Standard Life Insurance Co. (560 U.S. 242 (2010)).

Lifetime Limits, Annual Limits, and Essential Health Benefits Under the ACA. We completely updated this resource to reflect new government regulations and FAQs, including rules addressing health reimbursement arrangements, out-of-pocket limits, brand name prescription drugs, referenced-based pricing and much more.

Multi-State Plans Under the ACA. We updated this resource to reflect final regulations that made substantive changes to the ACA's Multi-State Plan Program (MSPP). Also see our related legal update (February 2015) addressing the MSPP final regulations, OPM Finalizes Changes to ACA Multi-State Plan Program.

Patient Protections and Clinical Trials Under the ACA. We substantially expanded and re-launched this resource to address standards for clinical trials, reflecting protections added under the ACA. Among other things, the ACA standards prevent certain group health plans and insurers from discriminating against individuals who participate in approved clinical trials.

PEO Client Service Agreement. Working with our Practical Law Labor & Employment colleagues, we updated this Standard Document, which reflects new provisions under the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 (TIPA). Among other provisions, TIPA authorized the IRS to create a voluntary certification for PEOs to be recognized as "certified" for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code.

Retiree Medical Benefits After the US Supreme Court's Tackett Decision. This Expert Q&A article, with John Houston Pope of Epstein Becker & Green, P.C., addresses implications for employers due to the Supreme Court's recent ruling in M&G Polymers USA, LLC v. Tackett ( (2015)). In Tackett, the Court rejected longstanding inferences adopted by the Sixth Circuit regarding retiree benefits. For more information, see our legal update (January 2015) on Tackett, Supreme Court Rejects Yard-Man Inference about Vesting of Lifetime Non-Pension Retiree Benefits through CBAs.

Small Business Health Care Tax Credit Under the ACA. We comprehensively updated this resource, which addresses an ACA tax credit intended to help small employers afford the cost of offering health insurance coverage, to address IRS final regulations that implement the credit.

Temporary Staffing Firms and the ACA's Employer Mandate. This entirely new Practice Note addresses the treatment of temporary staffing firm employees for the ACA's employer mandate (also referred to as the "play or pay" requirement). For additional employer mandate resources, see our Employer Mandate Toolkit.