July 18 - 24, 2004

Employee Benefits Center, IRS Join to Host Hot Topic Seminar

The John Marshall Law School welcomed representatives of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for a two-day supplemental training/continuing education program for IRS agents and investigators specializing in pensions and other employee benefit plans.

The "2004 Employee Plan Examinations Hot Topics Seminar" on June 29 and 30 was co-sponsored by the Center for Tax Law and Employee Benefits and the IRS Tax Exempt/Government Entities division of the Great Lakes area. The program was videotaped and will be used as a global training program for agents doing employee plans examinations. Joining the IRS manager and examiner participants at the workshop were John Marshall students, and staff from the U.S. Department of Labor.

IRS agents got unique insights, as well as practical training, on the full spectrum of concerns raised during an audit. Guest presenters from the government and private sectors, as well as professors from John Marshall, covered a range of topics, from the statute of limitations issues in auditing employee benefits plans to updates on current initiatives within the IRS to curb abusive tax avoidance transactions.

Speakers also offered tips on how to effectively sift through the morass of documents, statements and other benefits plan information used in an IRS examination.

The program was developed and coordinated through the joint efforts of IRS Great Lakes Area staff members Monika Templeman, employee plans area manager, and Timothy Lambin, employee plans group manager.

"This seminar represents an innovative joint training endeavor that exemplifies a true partnership with The John Marshall Law School in promoting voluntary compliance and preserving and enhancing the private retirement system through education and outreach," Templeman said.

The IRS staff worked with John Marshall Professor Kathryn Kennedy, director of the Center for Tax Law and Employee Benefits, and Barry Kozak, associate director of John Marshall's graduate employee benefits program.

"I really appreciated the opportunity to exchange ideas with the agents of the Employee Plans Great Lakes Area in this educational outreach," Professor Kennedy said. "It provides us with a greater understanding of the IRS concerns with various benefits. We, in turn, are able to share that information with our students."

John Marshall has the nation's first and only graduate program offering an LL.M. degree for practicing attorneys interested in specializing in employee benefits law.

Speakers in this highly successful program included Crystal Coleman, supervisory investigator at the Department of Labor Chicago office; Alec Dike, consultant at Watson Wyatt; Rita Fiumara, vice president at USB Financial Services; Daniel Gardner, senior IRS employee plans specialist from Independence, Ohio; Templeman; attorney Larry Grudzien; Sonja Hall, IRS employee plans senior specialist from Louisville, Ky.; Bruce Karem, IRS employee benefits group manager from Louisville, Ky.; Kennedy; Kozak; Marla Kreindler, a partner at Katten Muchin Zavis Rosenman; David O'Leary, of counsel at Holland & Knight; Linda Shore, special counsel at Katten Muchin Zavis Rosenman; Paul Shultz, IRS director, Employee Plans Determinations Redesign; John Walsh, attorney at the IRS Office of Chief Counsel; and David Weiner, senior attorney at IRS Office of Chief Counsel.

The John Marshall Law School, through its highly acclaimed Center for Tax Law and Employee Benefits, welcomes the opportunity to work jointly with the IRS, said Kennedy. The center has had numerous students intern at the IRS and then accept positions with the agency upon graduation.

"The working relationship our students and faculty have with the IRS, especially here in its Chicago offices has exponentially added value to the education here at John Marshall that just can't be taught in the normal class room settings," Kozak added.

The IRS' Lambin added that "as the area of employee benefits continues to expand and become more challenging, cooperative efforts such as this seminar become more necessary. Hopefully these joint efforts will increase. It was a pleasure to work with such dedicated and professional presenters."

Speakers at the "2004 Employee Plan Examinations Hot Topics Seminar" are (from left) Barry Kozak, associate director of John Marshall's graduate employee benefits program; Monika Templeman, employee plans area manager for the Internal Revenue Service Great Lakes Area; Professor Kathryn Kennedy, director of the Center for Tax Law and Employee Benefits at John Marshall; and Timothy Lambin, manager of the employee plans group in the Great Lakes Area. They are joined by special guest Steve Haugen, deputy regional director for the Employee Benefits Security Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor.

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Schedule of Events

July 19

Fair Housing Meeting, Room 1202, 12:00 p.m.
Alumni Association Annual Golf Outing, Ridge Country Club, 1:00 p.m.

July 20

MiniBar Exam, Room 200, 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.
U.S. Court of International Trade Training Session, Room 1100, 10:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Alumni Association Committee Meeting, Room 1200B, 11:45 a.m.