Feds Increase Scrutiny of Employee-Stock-Ownership Plans

The Labor Department is a plaintiff in 15 lawsuits involving employee-stock-ownership plans. Virtually all of the cases are based on allegations that company owners sold their shares to the plans at inflated values. If the allegations in these cases are true, employees who relied upon the plans for their retirements would have their investments placed in jeopardy. The government is expected to propose new rules to govern how appraisers provide valuations for employee-stock-ownership plans, the Wall Street Journal reports.