Kirsten Stewart

Kirsten has more than 20 years of experience providing guidance to employers in all areas of employee benefits.

Kirsten provides day-to-day advice to employers, including publicly-traded entities, government employers and non-profit entities regarding qualified plans (including 401(k), defined benefit, cash balance, and 403(b) plan), non-qualified plans, and welfare benefit plans. She assists her clients with plan design and compliance with all applicable laws, including Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Internal Revenue Code, Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), Multi-Employer Pension Plan Amendments Act (MEPPAA), Medicare Secondary Payer rules, and the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Kirsten strives to make these complex issues and requirements easier for her clients to understand and follow.

Listed in Best Lawyers in America for Employee Benefits Law for more than ten years, Kirsten is also a board member of the Denver Chapter of the Western Pension & Benefits Conference and frequent speaker on employee benefits topics.

• Assists clients with the design, implementation and termination of employee benefit plans.
• Navigates clients through the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System when plan errors occur.
• Performs fiduciary compliance audits and administrative audits and reviews of employee benefit plans to help clients identify compliance risks and represents clients in IRS and U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) audits of plans.
• Advises clients maintaining welfare benefit plans regarding compliance with the Affordable Care Act (including Employer Shared Responsibility Penalties), ERISA, COBRA, HIPAA, the Internal Revenue Code (including nondiscrimination requirements, cafeteria plan rules, and coordination among health reimbursement accounts, health savings accounts, and medical flexible spending accounts) and Medicare Secondary Payer rules.
• Represents parties in mergers and acquisitions with employee benefits due diligence issues, and advises buyer on benefit design for post-deal coverage of employees.
• Advises clients regarding participation in multiemployer pension plans (including withdrawal liability, delinquent contributions, and audits).
• Advises clients regarding deferred compensation arrangements subject to Internal Revenue Code Section 409A.

Speeches

• “Putting it All Together: Understanding Changes to Wage and Hour Laws and the New Colorado SecureSavings Plan,” Colorado Labor & Employment Breakfast Briefing, Apr. 12, 2023
• “Group Health Plan Update,” Annual Colorado Labor & Employment Law Seminar, Oct. 7, 2022
• “Health and Welfare Plan Update,” Annual Colorado Labor & Employment Law Conference, May 2019
• “Health and Welfare Plan Update,” Annual Colorado Labor & Employment Law Conference, May 2018
• “Health and Welfare Plan Update for Employers,” Annual Colorado Labor & Employment Law Conference, May 2017
• “ACA Update,” Annual Colorado Labor & Employment Conference, Apr. 2015

Publications

• Without Clarity, Wellness Incentive Goes up in Smoke
  Employee Benefit Advisor | Sept. 11, 2017