Biden Rolls Legal Dice by Proposing Fourth Fiduciary 401(k) Rule

The Biden administration’s latest attempt at regulating more retirement plan investment advice is vulnerable to the same kinds of legal challenges that undermined a failed Obama-era bid at fiduciary rulemaking.

A set of new US Labor Department proposals (88 Fed. Reg. 75890–76045) President Joe Biden announced Oct. 31 would subject more financial professionals to the strictest fiduciary standards of conduct under trust law and federal benefits statutes.

The regulatory package paints diverse investment advisory services in broad strokes, a key oversimplification the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit latched onto when it vacated the prior rule ...