David Arthur Thornton

In the past year alone, David Thornton has re-qualified a retirement plan with more than $100 million in assets; worked with multiple large employers to implement competitive executive compensation arrangements that are 409A compliant; assisted large and mid-size employers in more than $200 million in corporate transactions with an employee benefits component; created a successful three-part webinar series on the Affordable Care Act (ACA); and established a Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangement (MEWA) with 2,500 employees across three states. He counsels his clients on the complexities of compliance with the ACA, potentially saving them millions in Play or Pay penalties. As chair of the firm's Employee Benefits Practice Group, David leads a team of attorneys whose goal is to help employers deliver health and welfare and retirement benefits to their executives and employees.

David works with for-profit and nonprofit employers, plan fiduciaries, employees, third-party administrators, insurers and other providers of employee benefit plans and programs. His practice involves:

• Designing, implementing and administering retirement plans, including pension, profit sharing, 401(k) plans and employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs), as well as other non-qualified plan alternatives.
• Implementing and administering health and welfare plans, including self-funded and fully insured health benefit plans, including compliance with the recently enacted ACA.
• Assisting with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) compliance, cafeteria plans and medical reimbursement plans.
• Counseling clients with regards to compliance with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Department of Labor laws and regulations applicable to employee benefit plans as the fiduciary responsibilities of employers and trustees of employee benefit plans 

As a former Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) litigator, David helps companies navigate the intersection of litigation and business concerns. He successfully defended a case, Osborne v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co., that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, and resulted in a change to the interpretation of the word "occupation" under ERISA. The new definition still stands today. His deep understanding of ERISA allows David to provide practical advice in the complex landscape of employee benefits law. David often collaborates with attorneys including those in the Corporate, Healthcare and Litigation Practice Groups on employee benefits issues related to mergers, acquisitions and tax matters for clients.