biography

For over 20 years, Mark has practiced law at the highest levels, the large part of which in national and international firms practicing with nationally recognized benefits attorneys who pioneered this area of law following the enactment of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”).

Mark’s practice is broad in scope and includes the various issues employers face with respect to the full array of benefits, including:

  • Tax-qualified retirement plans – Mark has extensive experience involving complex and simple defined contribution and defined benefit plans, including traditional and hybrid (cash balance and pension equity) plans, that extends to drafting, amending, merging, and terminating plans to assisting clients manage investment risk in 401(k) plans in the face of the fees litigations brought by the plaintiff’s bar alleging violations of ERISA’s fiduciary rules
  • Welfare benefit plans – Mark has worked extensively with various welfare plans, including a broad variety of matters that range from self-funded group medical plans to establishing, administering, and winding down funding vehicles such as tax-exempt voluntary employees’ ben...
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  • Presentations & Teaching Experience
    • “Fiduciary Training for ERISA Fiduciaries” (Investment Committee Training) (Ongoing)
    • “Selected Fiduciary Issues” Benefits 101 Webinar (August 2011)
    • “Doing the Right Thing with Benefit Plans: Using Plan Fees Litigation to Explore the Fiduciary and Ethical Considerations for Benefits Practitioners” Southwest Benefits Association Annual Meeting (November 2007)
    • “Discovery and Privilege Issues Arising from Legal Ethical Issues in Benefits” ALI-ABA Committee on Continuing Professional Education (August 2005)
    • “The Financial Risks and Subsidized Rewards for Providing Retiree Rx Coverage: A Plan Sponsor’s Guide to Plan Design Issues in Light of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003” National Medicare Prescription Drug Congress (February 2004)
    • “Ethical Considerations: Who Is the Client?” ALI-ABA Committee on Continuing Professional Education (July 2002, updates July 2003, July 2004, August 2007)
    • “Contingent Workers: A Growing Problem for Retirement Plans” Journal of Pension Planning and Compliance 29 J. of Pens. Planning & Comp. 355 (2000)

 

 

Dallas

Credentials

Admissions

Texas

Education

Georgetown University Law Center, LL.M. in Taxation (with a Certificate in Employee Benefits), 2000

South Texas College of Law, J.D., 1997, cum laude (Top 10%)
Arizona State University, B.A. (Economics), 1990

Prior Law Firm Experience

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
Baker Botts LLP

Practice Areas