Steven W. Day

Steve regularly advises clients on:

• General design and compliance issues for qualified retirement plans, non-qualified deferred compensation arrangements and health plans
• Fiduciary responsibilities for administering benefit plans and investing plan assets
• Employee benefits issues that arise in connection with mergers and acquisitions
• Executive compensation arrangements and related requirements under the securities laws
• Governmental and church retirement and health plans

Steve has been recognized by Chambers USA for Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation in Ohio for six years, most recently in 2023 in Band 3. Clients interviewed by Chambers USA stated, "This is a very complicated area of the law, and Steven Day does a great job in simplifying it and making it easy for internal business partners to understand. Steve works the timelines very well, gets us good work product, and meets expectations every time."

Steve is an active member of the American Bar Association. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of the American Benefits Council and the National Association of Public Pension Attorneys.

Steve serves as a director of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Foundation and is a member of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association. Steve has served as Chair of its Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts Committee, through which he provides pro bono legal services to members of the local arts community and frequently presents to artists and students on legal issues affecting artists. Steve is a regular lecturer at the Cleveland Institute of Art and the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he teaches classes on business and professionalism in the arts and music industry.

Steve is on the Board of Directors of the Swedish American Chamber of Commerce in Ohio.

Honors & Recognitions

• Chambers USA, Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation, Band 3, Ohio (2016-2017, 2020-2023)
• The Best Lawyers in America^®, Tax Law and Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law (2020-2023)
• Ohio Super Lawyers, Ohio Rising Stars (2013-2017)

Education

J.D., magna cum laude, Case Western Reserve University School of Law, Order of the Coif, Executive Editor of Case Law Review, Law-Medicine Fellowship, 2007

M.A., Biological Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2003

B.S., Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1999

Experience

• Advising large energy and utilities company on entering into various investment arrangements for its multi-billion dollar defined benefit pension plan, including investments in hedge funds, private equity funds, collective investment trusts and separate accounts.
• Representing a global food and beverage manufacturing company with review and negotiating contracts with investment managers for individualized funds under its multi-billion dollar defined contribution plan.
• Advising several clients, including national banks, broker-dealers and Registered Investment Advisor firms, on implementing the Department of Labor’s new fiduciary rule and related exemptions.
• Advising several publicly held clients on designing and obtaining shareholder approval of equity compensation plans.
• Advising large governmental retirement program on negotiating arrangement with pharmaceutical benefits program.

Professional & Community

• Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Foundation, Board Member
• American Bar Association, Member
• American Benefits Council, Member
• National Association of Public Pension Attorneys, Member
• Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, Chair of CMBA's Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts Committee and Member of Reach Out Committee for Non-Profits
• Swedish American Chamber of Commerce in Ohio, Board of Directors

Services

Retirement and Health Plans

• Tax-qualified defined benefit and defined contribution plans
• Medical plans, Section 125 "cafeteria" plans, wrap welfare plans
• Compliance with Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, HIPAA and COBRA
• Governmental retirement and health plans

Executive Compensation

• Equity and phantom equity compensation plans for public and private companies
• Annual bonus and long-term cash incentive arrangements for public, private and non-profit organizations
• Employment, severance, change-in-control and sale bonus agreements
• Non-qualified deferred compensation plans
• Corporate governance and shareholder disclosure requirements under federal securities laws, stock exchange rules and shareholder guidelines

Investment Management and Fiduciary Responsibilities

• Plan investments in hedge funds, private equity funds, collective investment trusts, separate accounts and pooled arrangements
• Service agreements with outside fiduciary advisors
• Compliance with Department of Labor’s new fiduciary rule and related exemptions
• Fiduciary structure and governance for plan sponsors
• Investment policy statements