Gilbert C. Van Loon
Office Information
Practice Areas
Gilbert has represented clients in in all aspects of retirement and health and welfare benefit plans – design, administration, compliance, taxation, employee communications, fiduciary responsibility, defense of benefit claims, examinations, ruling applications, correction program filings and merger and acquisition transactions.
Biography – View PDF Bio
- Associations
- Bar Admissions
- Distinctions
- Education & Honors
- Experience
- In the News
- Papers, Presentations, & Publications
- Recent Blogs
Bar Admissions
- Mississippi, 1985
- U.S. District Courts
- Mississippi: Southern
- U.S. Court of Appeals
- 5th Circuit
- U.S. Tax Court
Distinctions
- AV-Rated, Martindale-Hubbell
- The Best Lawyers in America®
- Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law 1999-2020
- The Best Lawyers in America® Lawyer of the Year, Employee Benefits (Mississippi), 2011, 2017, 2019
- Certified Public Accountant, 1981
- Mississippi Society of Certified Public Accountants, Silver Medal, November 1981
- University of Southern Mississippi, Alumni Hall of Fame, 2015
Education & Honors
- University of Florida, LL.M., Taxation, 1986
- University of Mississippi, J.D., cum laude, 1985
- University of Southern Mississippi, B.S., Business Administration, summa cum laude, 1981
Experience
- Representation of clients in all aspects of retirement and health and welfare benefit plans – design, administration, compliance, taxation, employee communications, fiduciary responsibility, and defense of benefit claims.
- Representation of clients in implementation of the Affordable Care Act, COBRA, HIPAA, and other federal mandates.
- Representation of clients before the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor in examinations, ruling applications and correction program filings.
- Advises on benefit issues in merger and acquisition transactions – due diligence; coordination, transition and termination of benefit programs; and correcting past deficiencies.
- Representation of clients in all aspects of nonqualified deferred compensation plans – design, administration, compliance, document drafting and taxation.
In the News
- 173 Butler Snow Attorneys Named in Best Lawyers® 2020, 19 Named “Lawyer of the Year”
- 158 Butler Snow Attorneys Named in Best Lawyers®, 18 Named “Lawyer of the Year”
- Commerce Union buying Columbia bank - Nashville Post
- 147 Butler Snow Attorneys Named in Best Lawyers®, 18 Named “Lawyer of the Year”
- SmartBank to acquire Tuscaloosa, Alabama-based Capstone Bank - Spoke
- Butler Snow Attorney Among 7 Inducted Into the USM Alumni Hall of Fame
- Butler Snow Selected as Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners’ 2013 North American Team of the Year Finalist
Papers, Presentations, & Publications
- Author, "New ‘Safe Harbor’ Hardship Withdrawal Rules Effective January 1, 2020," Benefits Brief, December 2019.
- Author, “Benefit Plan Records Retention: How Long is Enough,” Mississippi Business Journal, Vol. 40, No. 25, June 22, 2018.
- Author, "The New DOL Investment Fiduciary Rules – Effective June 9, 2017, But How Long Will They Last?," Benefits Brief, June 2017.
- Speaker, "How the New DOL Investment Advice Fiduciary Rules will Affect Financial Advisors," National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors: Jackson, Mississippi Chapter, September 2016.
- Author, "SEC Money Market Mutual Fund Rules – The Impact on Retirement Plans," Benefits Brief, May 2016.
- Author, “Same-Sex Marriage and Benefit Plans of Mississippi Municipalities,” Mississippi Municipalities, Vol. 65, No. 1, (2016).
- Speaker, “Bank Trusteed Retirement Plans: What’s New and What’s on the Horizon,” Mississippi Bankers Association Financial Management Conference, November 2015.
- Author, "Best Practices in Periodic Reviews of Participant Directed Retirement Plans," Benefits Commentary, June 2013.
- Author, "The Department of Labor Fee Transparency Initiatives: Part 3 – Mandatory Investment and Fee and Expense Disclosures to Plan Participants," Benefits Brief, May 2012. More...
- Author, "The Department of Labor Fee Transparency Initiatives: Part 2 – Mandatory Service Provider Fee Disclosures - Updated," Benefits Brief, May 2012.
- Author, "The Importance of Understanding and Monitoring Retirement Plan Fees and Expenses," Benefits Commentary, August 2011.
- Author, "The Department of Labor Fee Transparency Initiatives: Part 2 – Mandatory Service Provider Fee Disclosures," Benefits Brief, June 2011.
- Speaker, "Avoiding Tax Traps in Employment and Severance Agreements," Mississippi Employment Law Seminar, University of Mississippi, May 2011.
- Co-Author, "The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (including COBRA)," Mississippi Employment Law Practice Handbook, 2009.
- Speaker, "Employee Benefits in an Uncertain Economy: Implementing Cost Saving Strategies and Other Administration Issues," Mississippi Employment Law Seminar, University of Mississippi, May 2009.
- Speaker, "What CPAs and Their Clients Should Know About Section 409A," Central Chapter of the Mississippi Society of Certified Public Accountants, September 2008.
- Author, "Best Practices for Minimizing the Potential for Retirement Plan Fiduciary Liability," Benefits Commentary, July 2008.
- Author, "U.S. Supreme Court Permits Individual Lawsuits for Retirement Plan Fiduciary Breach," Benefits Brief, March 2008.
- Author, "The Section 415 Regulations on Post Severance Compensation," Benefits Brief, February 2008.
- Author, "Plan Amendment Deadline Extended For Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Arrangements," Planning Notes, November 2007.
- Speaker, "The Coming Storm: Best Practices for Minimizing the Risk of Fiduciary Liability in Bank Trusteed Retirement Plans," Mississippi Bankers Association Trust Conference, November 2007.
- Speaker, "Best Practices for Minimizing the Potential for Retirement Plan Fiduciary Liability," Greater Memphis Employee Benefits Council, July 2007.
- Author, "New Regs Establish Deadline for Implementing Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan Changes," High Points, June 2007.
- Author, "Implications of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 for 2007 Plan Administration," Benefits Brief, December 2006.
- Speaker, "Methods to Contain Employee Benefits Costs," MetroJackson Chamber of Commerce, August 2006.