Gary Thayer is a partner at ABGL. He serves as counsel to multi-employer employee benefit funds on all aspects of regulatory and fiduciary compliance. Aside from the counsel he provides involving the daily issues that arise during the course of operating a fund, he also counsels Trustees and Fund Administrators on plan design, investments, service provider retention, Qualified Domestic Relations Orders and employee benefit fund taxation. Mr. Thayer also represents clients during all phases of investigations by the Internal Revenue Service and U.S. Department of Labor.
Gary was previously employed as an Investigator for the U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration. He examined employee benefit plan documents to determine their compliance with ERISA, DOL Regulations, and other civil and criminal statutes. He advises plan fiduciaries regarding their statutory responsibilities under ERISA and successfully worked alongside the U.S. Attorneys Office and U.S. Solicitor of Labor to prosecute individuals charged with fiduciary misconduct, resulting in two Secretary of Labor Exceptional Achievement Awards.
Gary was recently appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Labor for a three-year term to the ERISA Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans.
Gary is a frequent guest lecturer for various educational seminars on topics involving ERISA and employee benefits law. He has also been the featured speaker before various committees of the Nassau County Bar Association and the New York State Bar Association regarding new developments involving HIPAA, Pension Reform and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
He worked as a law clerk for the New York State Attorney General, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, helping prevent the waste, fraud and abuse of Medicaid subsidies.
