Title 29, LaborRelease 119-110

§1102 Establishment of Plan

Title 29 › CHAPTER 18 — EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY PROGRAM › SUBCHAPTER I — PROTECTION OF EMPLOYEE BENEFIT RIGHTS › Subtitle B — Regulatory Provisions › part 4 — fiduciary responsibility › § 1102

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

Employee benefit plans must be written down and must name one or more people who will run and manage the plan. The plan must explain how money will be funded and managed, how duties are divided for running the plan (including any procedure mentioned in section 1105(c)(1)), how the plan can be changed and who can change it, and the rules for payments into and out of the plan. Named fiduciary: a person listed in the plan or picked under a plan procedure by the employer or employee group (or both). A plan may let one person hold more than one role, let a named fiduciary hire advisors, or let a named fiduciary appoint investment manager(s) to handle plan assets.

Full Legal Text

Title 29, §1102

Labor, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Named fiduciaries

(1)Every employee benefit plan shall be established and maintained pursuant to a written instrument. Such instrument shall provide for one or more named fiduciaries who jointly or severally shall have authority to control and manage the operation and administration of the plan.

(2)For purposes of this subchapter, the term “named fiduciary” means a fiduciary who is named in the plan instrument, or who, pursuant to a procedure specified in the plan, is identified as a fiduciary (A) by a person who is an employer or employee organization with respect to the plan or (B) by such an employer and such an employee organization acting jointly.

(b)Requisite features of plan

Every employee benefit plan shall—

(1)provide a procedure for establishing and carrying out a funding policy and method consistent with the objectives of the plan and the requirements of this subchapter,

(2)describe any procedure under the plan for the allocation of responsibilities for the operation and administration of the plan (including any procedure described in section 1105(c)(1) of this title),

(3)provide a procedure for amending such plan, and for identifying the persons who have authority to amend the plan, and

(4)specify the basis on which payments are made to and from the plan.

(c)Optional features of plan

Any employee benefit plan may provide—

(1)that any person or group of persons may serve in more than one fiduciary capacity with respect to the plan (including service both as trustee and administrator);

(2)that a named fiduciary, or a fiduciary designated by a named fiduciary pursuant to a plan procedure described in section 1105(c)(1) of this title, may employ one or more persons to render advice with regard to any responsibility such fiduciary has under the plan; or

(3)that a person who is a named fiduciary with respect to control or management of the assets of the plan may appoint an investment manager or managers to manage (including the power to acquire and dispose of) any assets of a plan.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

29 U.S.C. § 1102

Title 29, Labor

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110