Higher Education Retirement Plans: Update on Litigation and Risk Mitigation Considerations

Speaker Biographies

Tara Headshot
Tara Schulstad Sciscoe is a partner in the Employee Benefits Group of Ice Miller LLP. She advises employers, plans and trusts with respect to the design and compliance of their employee benefit programs, including their retirement plans, deferred compensation plans, health and welfare plans, severance plans, early retirement programs, executive compensation programs, tuition remission and fringe benefit plans, and phased retirement programs.  Tara spends a significant amount of her time working with public and private colleges and universities with respect to their unique employee benefit plans and issues.  Most recently, this has included advising institutions with respect to the Affordable Care Act shared responsibility and employer reporting rules, the employer payment plan guidance and student health insurance plans, and fiduciary duties with respect to retirement plans.

Tara graduated from Duke University in 1991 earning a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, in psychology and political science. She earned her juris doctorate, cum laude and Order of the Coif, from the University of Michigan in 1994, where she was a contributing editor of the Michigan Law Review. Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Tara joined Ice Miller LLP in 1994. She has been recognized as one of the Best Lawyers in America, Employee Benefits Law, every year since 2013.  She is a frequent speaker and writer on employee benefits matters, including for the National Association of College and University Attorneys (NACUA).


  
Tom Shanahan Headshot
Thomas C. Shanahan serves as Senior Vice President for Legal Affairs and General Counsel for the seventeen-campus University of North Carolina System.  He provides advice and counsel to the President, the Board of Governors, and the senior officers of the University with regard to all legal and policy issues affecting the UNC System.  Mr. Shanahan joined the UNC System from the U.S. Department of Labor where his practice included trial litigation and advice concerning ERISA and employee benefits law, Fair Labor Standards Act matters, immigration, ethics, and administrative law.  Mr. Shanahan served in various Labor Department leadership positions in Atlanta, including Deputy Regional Solicitor and Deputy Regional Director in the Employee Benefits Security Administration.  Mr. Shanahan received his law degree from the University of Georgia School of Law, and his undergraduate degree from Cornell University.