Haynes and Boone Blogs includes the Firm Blog, IP Beacon: Patent Law Review, Practical Benefits Lawyer, Texas Insurance Academy and The Dec Sheet-Insurance Law
Practice Expertise
- Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation
- Employee Benefits M&A
- ERISA and Other Benefits Litigation
- ESOPs and Other Stock-Based Plans
Areas of Practice
- Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation
- Employee Benefits M&A
- ERISA and Other Benefits Litigation
- ESOPs and Other Stock-Based Plans
- Executive and Incentive Compensation
- Family Office
- Financial Regulatory
- Government Audits and Investigations
- Healthcare and Life Sciences
- Investment Management
- Plan Fiduciaries Counseling
- Privacy and Data Security
- Retirement Plans View More
Profile
Susan Wetzel is the chair of the Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Practice Group. She counsels employers, executives and members of corporate boards regarding design, implementation, and compliance issues relating to retirement plans, welfare plans, employee benefits, executive compensation, and mergers and acquisitions. She has provided legal advice regarding the employee benefit issues in over 800 mergers and acquisitions throughout her career. Susan's experience also includes, among other things, assisting U.S.-based clients with the design and implementation of equity incentive plans for the benefit of their globally-based employees. She is a frequent speaker on employee benefits issues at seminars for human resources groups, bar associations, individual companies, and continuing education seminars.
Susan is a contributor to Haynes and Boone's Practical Benefits Lawyer blog, which discusses issues and developments in the areas of employee benefits and executive compensation.
Susan is a contributor to Haynes and Boone's Practical Benefits Lawyer blog, which discusses issues and developments in the areas of employee benefits and executive compensation.
Bar Admissions
Texas
Indiana
Education
J.D., Ohio Northern University, 1997, with honors
B.B.A., Western Michigan University, 1994, magna cum laude
Areas of Practice
- Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation
- Employee Benefits M&A
- ERISA and Other Benefits Litigation
- ESOPs and Other Stock-Based Plans
- Executive and Incentive Compensation
- Family Office
- Financial Regulatory
- Government Audits and Investigations
- Healthcare and Life Sciences
- Investment Management
- Plan Fiduciaries Counseling
- Privacy and Data Security
- Retirement Plans
Professional Career
Significant Accomplishments
Advising clients regarding ERISA and employee benefit issues in mergers and acquisitions, acting as counsel to both buyers and sellers, including transactions involving benefit and equity issues in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Finland, Singapore, China, Japan, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and the Slovak Republic.
Advising clients regarding the design and implementation of all types of tax qualified plans, including defined benefit plans, Section 457(b) plans, Section 457(f) plans, and Section 401(k) plans.
Counseling clients regarding tax compliance and regulatory issues associated with fully-insured and self-funded health plans, VEBAs and MEWAs, including the impact of health care reform on plan documents and operations.
Assisting clients with benefits issues relating to inbound and outbound transactions, including Internal Revenue Code Section 409A issues relating to expatriate allowances, tax equalization programs, foreign benefit plans, and equity awards to foreign-based employees.
Negotiating executive employment and severance agreements, acting as counsel to both executives and employers, and counseling clients regarding issues under Internal Revenue Code Sections 162(m), 280G and 409A.
Designing and implementing all types of equity compensation plans, including stock options, restricted stock, phantom stock, and stock appreciation rights.
Counseling plan sponsors regarding how the HIPAA privacy and security regulations affect their group health plans and drafting forms, policies and procedures to assist group health plans in complying with the HIPAA privacy and security regulations.
Advising clients regarding ERISA and employee benefit issues in mergers and acquisitions, acting as counsel to both buyers and sellers, including transactions involving benefit and equity issues in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Finland, Singapore, China, Japan, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and the Slovak Republic.
Advising clients regarding the design and implementation of all types of tax qualified plans, including defined benefit plans, Section 457(b) plans, Section 457(f) plans, and Section 401(k) plans.
Counseling clients regarding tax compliance and regulatory issues associated with fully-insured and self-funded health plans, VEBAs and MEWAs, including the impact of health care reform on plan documents and operations.
Assisting clients with benefits issues relating to inbound and outbound transactions, including Internal Revenue Code Section 409A issues relating to expatriate allowances, tax equalization programs, foreign benefit plans, and equity awards to foreign-based employees.
Negotiating executive employment and severance agreements, acting as counsel to both executives and employers, and counseling clients regarding issues under Internal Revenue Code Sections 162(m), 280G and 409A.
Designing and implementing all types of equity compensation plans, including stock options, restricted stock, phantom stock, and stock appreciation rights.
Counseling plan sponsors regarding how the HIPAA privacy and security regulations affect their group health plans and drafting forms, policies and procedures to assist group health plans in complying with the HIPAA privacy and security regulations.
Articles
CARES Act Relief Checklist: Considerations in Deciding What Relief is Right for Your Business
By Susan Wetzel |April 2020Employee Benefits/Executive Compensation Changes Made by the CARES Act
By Susan Wetzel |March 2020COVID-19 Employee Benefit and Executive Compensation Questions
By Susan Wetzel |March 2020
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