Claudia M. Brobst

Claudia provides counsel on a wide range of employee benefit matters, including compliance issues under IRS and Department of Labor rules, benefit considerations in mergers and acquisitions, employee communications and fiduciary concerns.

Prior to joining Calfee in 2006, Claudia was with Parker-Hannifin Corporation for 13 years, where she served as Assistant General Counsel responsible for benefits. Claudia also served as an attorney with the law firms of Squire, Sanders & Dempsey and Willkie, Farr & Gallagher.

Claudia earned her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, where she served as the Case and Notes Editor of The Tax Lawyer. She earned her B.A., magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Hiram College.

Education

J.D., Georgetown University Law Center, 1981

B.A., magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Hiram College, 1973

Experience

• Advised a global manufacturing company and its Investment Committee on its fiduciary obligations with respect to monitoring and oversight of its employer stock fund, advised the company on its consideration of converting equity awards to cash-settled awards, and assisted with updating forms of various equity awards for the company. Calfee advised the company with respect to the treatment of various executive compensation arrangements through a bankruptcy process, including nonqualified deferred compensation plans and equity compensation awards. We continue to advise the client with respect to its post-bankruptcy compensation and benefits arrangements.
• Serving as sole Employee Benefits counsel and regularly advises this 30,000-employee client with respect to various matters related to its multibillion-dollar 401(k) plan trust and pension plan trust, and executive benefit plans including plan design, plan integrations, plan administration, service provider contracts, investment management and investment advisor agreements and related plan and trust terms. We also advise the client (in its plan sponsor and plan fiduciary roles) with respect to changes in law, including evolving Internal Revenue Service, Department of Labor (DOL), and Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations. The engagements under the plans often require reviewing and negotiating investment advisory and other services agreements with the financial institutions and advising on related plan and trust provisions.
• Assisted a major corporation with the successful implementation of a significant restructuring of its 401(k) plan fund line-up, including reviewing and advising with respect to employee communications, service agreements, and investment disclosure.
• Obtained favorable compliance statements for clients in the correction of operational matters under the Internal Revenue Service Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System.
• Counseled with respect to benefit plan diligence review, risk-assessment, and resolution of issues in numerous mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures.
• Assisted with post-transaction integration of acquired entities into clients’ existing retirement programs, including identification and resolution of issues, plan documentation, and employee communications.
• Ongoing counsel to several clients with respect to day-to-day maintenance of qualified retirement plans and welfare plans.

Professional & Community

• Worldwide Employee Benefits (WEB) Network, Cleveland Chapter, Past President, has been a frequent speaker for WEB
• Amigos de las Americas, Kent, Ohio Chapter, Board Member