Jorge M. Leon

Jorge is at the forefront of advising on emerging fiduciary issues related to ERISA cybersecurity and litigation mitigation. Clients have entrusted Jorge and his team to oversee the design and administration of their health and welfare programs, executive compensation arrangements, and retirement plans. As a boardroom insider for public and privately-held companies, Jorge enjoys the confidence of directors, compensation committees and C-suite executives and helps them solve critical compensation, governance and benefit issues. 

Plan sponsors, administrators, fiduciaries, insurers and third-party recordkeepers turn to Jorge for strategic counsel on designing, establishing, and maintaining benefit and compensation plans. Clients laud his responsiveness and meticulous approach to matters ranging from plan establishment and design to government investigations and inquiries, ongoing compliance and qualification, ERISA litigation, and mergers and acquisitions.

Before joining Michael Best, Jorge practiced for 15 years at a premiere Chicago-based AmLaw 100 firm, where he was the lead partner for qualified plan matters. He brings a strong record of successful outcomes, an uncompromising level of service, and improved cost efficiency to his current practice.

As a leading ERISA practitioner and thought-leader, Jorge’s opinions and views are frequently sought by nationally recognized publishers, journalists, bar associations and professional organizations. Jorge has also advised regulators and legislators on various policies impacting benefits. Some of Jorge’s views on benefits and related policy have been affirmed by the DOL and IRS in published guidance.

As a general problem-solver and external general counsel in higher education, Jorge has helped clients with their non-benefit needs. These clients have ranged from colleges and publicly-traded and privately-held companies to ultra-high-net-worth individuals in the NFL and financial world.  Recent matters Jorge has successfully handled for these clients involved M&A, banking regulatory compliance, corporate/commercial law, real estate, environmental law, immigration, employment law, bankruptcy, debt restructuring, turnarounds, and various types of litigation (e.g., commercial, cybersecurity, securities and employment).

Deep knowledge, broad experience

Jorge is well versed in the intricacies of 401(k), 403(b), 457(b), and defined benefit plans. Within the benefit and compensation arena, his practice includes:

• Providing ERISA subject matter expertise and defense strategies in one of the first ERISA cybersecurity litigations that resulted in landmark rulings
• Negotiating ERISA 3(21) and 3(38) investment advisor/manager agreements, as well as the benefit aspects of sizable corporate transactions
• Counseling clients on the administrative, design, legal, and testing considerations of recordkeeping conversions
• Negotiating third-party recordkeeping agreements relating to plans holding between $1 million to $5 billion in assets
• Supervising the transition of insurers/claims administrators for health and welfare plans
• Restructuring health and welfare plans to achieve cost efficiencies and legal compliance
• Resolving various audit, administrative, and compliance issues involving qualification, fiduciary, and reporting issues with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)
• Designing fiduciary policies and internal controls for plan sponsors, fiduciaries, and administrators
• Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS), Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP), and prohibited transactions
• Counseling clients on design options for safe harbor plans, including 401(k)(12) and Qualified Automatic Contribution Arrangements (QACA)
• Advising employer-trustees in establishing and maintaining Taft-Hartley plans
• Advising public, privately-held and higher education clients on various qualification, correction, and administrative issues and plan communication strategies
• Advising hedge fund and venture capital clients on the ERISA plan asset rules and on state open disclosure requirements