DLA Piper and Dimensional Fund Advisors debut comprehensive Fiduciary Resource Guide

The Dimensional Fiduciary Resource Guide, recently debuted by DLA Piper and Dimensional Fund Advisors, is a comprehensive resource for retirement plan fiduciaries when establishing, maintaining or improving plan design. The publication was primarily authored by Ian Kopelman, DLA Piper partner and renowned ERISA attorney.

The guide covers the three major sections of interest to retirement fiduciaries:

1. Fiduciary Foundations: Requirements for setting up a DC plan, which includes plan establishment and fiduciary framework, roles and responsibilities, use of committees and governance, education and investment policy statements.
2. Fiduciary Application: Considerations for the ongoing operation of a plan, including investment manager selection, plan choices from participant-driven to QDIAs, asset allocation selection and evaluation, investment monitoring, and fee evaluation.
3. Additional Fiduciary Considerations, such as compliance best practices, CITs, cybersecurity and HSA guidance.

“The Dimensional Fiduciary Resource Guide was created as a tool to help advisors, plan sponsors and their service providers ensure that their plan offering is valuable and relevant, which will help them meet goals with respect to attracting and retaining employee talent,” said Kopelman.

To address the ever-changing regulatory and legislative landscape governing DC plans, the co-authors intend to periodically update the guide. For example, the changing environment around cybersecurity represents an opportunity for retirement plan fiduciaries to use this guide as a catalog of best practices. Future iterations scheduled for later this year include the ever-changing topic of incorporating ESG in DC plans.

“Dimensional applauds the advisors, consultants and service providers that establish and manage retirement plans in the best interests of participants. Our goal is to assist those entrusted with these critical responsibilities,” said Tim Kohn, Dimensional’s Head of Retirement Distribution. “We are delighted to introduce the Dimensional Fiduciary Resource Guide, which presents carefully curated considerations for fiduciary-related topics.”

In addition to Kopelman, the Fiduciary Resource Guide’s authors include DLA Piper attorney Virginia Lewey; Blaine Aikin, Founder and Principal at Fiduciary Insights, LLC; and Warren Cormier, Executive Director of the DCIIA Retirement Research Center. Industry expert Zvi Bodie, PhD, independent consultant at Bodie Associates and Professor Emeritus at Boston University, contributed additional feedback and collaboration throughout the guide’s creation.

If you have any questions, or you are interested in obtaining a copy of the Dimensional Fiduciary Resource Guide, please contact Ian Kopelman at DLA Piper or Dimensional Fund Advisors.