A unique thing about ESOP companies is that the trustee is the shareholder of record for the corporation, not the ESOP participants, who are beneficial owners. The trustee is a critical player, but the concept of a trustee can be confusing and unfamiliar to employee-owners.

Washington, DC is a town with a lot of sayings borne from the hard-earned political wisdom one acquires working here. Recently, with the release and withdrawal of the Biden Administration’s ideas of what constitutes Adequate Consideration for ESOPs, two of those sayings come to the top of my mind.

A guide to the ERISA rules all ESOP fiduciaries need to know to fulfill their obligations.