Biography

Ken handles matters in all areas of employee benefits, including retirement plans, welfare plans, fringe benefits, and executive compensation. He regularly counsels clients on fiduciary obligations under ERISA, and on income and employment tax issues associated with all areas of employee benefits.

Ken has significant experience representing clients in Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) audits. Ken has represented many clients before the IRS under its Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS), and before the DOL under its Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP) and Delinquent Filer Voluntary Correction Program (DFVCP). He also spends a significant amount of time advising clients on their nonqualified deferred compensation plans, incentive compensation plans, and welfare benefit plans including the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) issues.

Ken began his career as a law clerk to the Chief Justice of the Maine Superior Court, and then as a law clerk in the Utah Court of Appeals. He then worked in Boston for nearly four years in the tax department of a national public accounting firm, Coopers & Lybrand. He earned an advanced degree in taxation from Boston University, and for the past 20-plus years has concentrated his practice with Verrill in the area of employee benefits.

Ken currently serves as Vice Chair of Verrill's Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group and as President of the Maine Employee Benefits Council.

Services/Industries

Education

  • Boston University School of Law  (LL.M.)
    • Taxation
  • University of Maine School of Law  (J.D.)
  • Colby College  (B.A., magna cum laude)
    • Phi Beta Kappa

Bar Admissions

  • Maine
  • Massachusetts

Memberships

  • President, Maine Employee Benefits Council
  • Maine State Bar Association
  • Employee Benefits Committee, Section of Taxation, American Bar Association
  • National Diocesan Attorneys Association

Honors

  • AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell
  • Recognized in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business under Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation
  • Named the Best Lawyers® 2021 Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law "Lawyer of the Year" in Portland, Maine
  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© for Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law in Portland, Maine

To learn more about third-party ratings and rankings, and the selection processes used for inclusion, click here.

Clerkships

  • Maine Superior Court, Chief Justice Thomas E. Delanty II
  • Utah Court of Appeals, Judge Gregory K. Orme

Firm Highlights

Blog

401(k) Plan Matching Contributions: To True Up or Not True Up?

As a matter of plan design, for purposes of matching contributions some 401(k) plans provide that a participant’s compensation for the entire plan year is taken into account (regardless of whether the participant makes...

Blog

Next Steps for Making Collective Investment Trusts Available to More Retirement Plans

Collective investment trusts (“CITs”) have become an increasingly popular choice for 401(k) plan investment menus over the past decade, consistent with a trend toward lower-cost investment options that has been driven, in part, by...

Publication/Podcast

Amending Your Retirement Plans this Year for SECURE Act and CARES Act Changes

This post was updated on September 29, 2022. On August 3, 2022, the IRS extended the deadline for retirement plan sponsors to adopt amendments necessary to comply with the Setting Every Community Up for...

Blog

Casting a Wider Net: SECURE 2.0 Gives “Long-Term Part-Time Employees” Faster Access to 401(k) Plans and 403(b) Plans

The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0”) promotes and expands access to retirement plans for American workers in several ways. Among other things, SECURE 2.0 strengthens and expands the special 401(k) plan eligibility...

Blog

When Cash is not King: Holiday Gifts as “De Minimis” Fringe Benefits

To celebrate the holiday season, this post highlights the tax consequences of employer-sponsored holiday perks such as gift cards, turkeys, hams and gift baskets. Under the current tax rules, employers may give infrequent low...

Blog

Pension-Linked Emergency Savings Accounts: Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Forthcoming

Following the initial flurry of publications summarizing the retirement plan enhancements under the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0”), this post takes a deeper dive into one of those enhancements: the optional “pension-linked...

Blog

Proposed Regulations on How to Use Forfeiture Accounts: Helpful Guidance and a Great Reminder to Plan Sponsors

On February 27, 2023, the IRS published proposed regulations on the use of forfeitures in qualified retirement plans. [1] For defined contribution plans, the regulations provide welcome clarity on what forfeitures can be used...

Blog

A Last-Minute Gift – Prescription Drug Reporting Grace Period and Good Faith Relief

In a move akin to last-minute gift-giving, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury (the “Departments”) released FAQ 56 on December 23, 2022, which provides relief regarding the Prescription Drug...

Blog

SECURE 2.0 Provides New and Expanded Retirement Plan Correction Rules

With the passage of the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0”) on December 29, 2022, Congress has made several changes related to the correction of errors in administering retirement plans. These changes include...

Blog

IRS Guidance Expands Access to ACA Premium Tax Credit, Allows Cafeteria Plan Sponsors to Permit Employees to Revoke Family Coverage Mid-year

Final Regulations under Section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code On October 11, 2022, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Final Regulations under Code Section 36B relating to eligibility for the Affordable Care Act’s...

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