John D. Walch

Practice Areas

With more than 30-years of experience exclusively with employee benefit plans, Mr. Walch works with employers to resolve issues relating to a broad range of qualified and non-qualified benefit plans. He has worked with employers regarding their equity-based incentive plans, ESOPs, non-qualified deferred compensation plans, qualified retirement plans and welfare benefit plans, including health, cafeteria and flexible spending plans. He has designed, drafted and obtained IRS approval of hundreds of qualified retirement plans. For plans facing disqualification or other sanctions, he has obtained dozens of compliance statements from the IRS and negotiated positive outcomes in response to U.S. Dept. of Labor investigations. He advises plan fiduciaries on operational issues involving fiduciary liability and plan administration issues, QDROs and benefit claims or appeals.

Mr. Walch also drafts service provider and business associate agreements for plans and plan sponsors. He has tried over 50 ERISA benefit cases in federal court. He also designs deferred compensation arrangements and incentive plans involving stock options, restricted stock, stock appreciation rights and phantom stock. He advises employers on parachute payments, COBRA, HIPAA and other benefit plan issues, including Affordable Care Act compliance for health plans, avoiding prohibited transactions and obtaining DOL exemptions.