About Brandon Long
Brandon Long is an experienced, AV Preeminent-rated employee benefits attorney with the McAfee & Taft law firm. He concentrates his practice on qualified retirement plans, health and welfare plans, and executive compensation. He has represented a broad range of clients, including Fortune 500 companies, publicly traded and closely held businesses, middle-market companies, corporate trustees, hospitals, healthcare providers, partnerships, cities, universities and Indian tribes. He currently serves as leader of the firm’s Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Group, overseeing one of the Southwest’s largest and most experienced teams of employee benefits lawyers.
Brandon’s practice is focused on matters involving 401(k) plans, defined benefit plans and employee stock ownership plans; audits and investigations by the IRS and the U.S. Department of Labor; mergers and acquisitions involving ERISA plans; retirement plans for tax-exempt and governmental entities, including Indian tribes; health and welfare issues, including health care reform; and executive compensation issues arising under Code Section 409A. He has particular experience fixing broken retirement plans and has filed and successfully resolved numerous voluntary correction applications with the IRS.
Since the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (health care reform), Brandon has counseled clients of all sizes on the interpretation and implementation of key deadlines and measures, including “pay or play,” health insurance exchange issues, changes to flexible spending accounts, W-2 reporting, automatic enrollment, discrimination testing, and waiting periods. He also helps clients analyze and implement cost-containment strategies.
Brandon’s clients seek his advice for practical, creative solutions to complex problems, and the ability to make highly technical concepts understandable to executives, employees and other lawyers. A portion of his practice has been devoted to complex litigation, including ERISA litigation. In 2007, on behalf of a major insurance company, Brandon co-authored the petition for a writ of certiorari that was granted by the U.S. Supreme Court, and he helped prepare for and attended the oral argument in the Supreme Court, which issued an opinion in his client’s favor.
Prior to returning to his hometown and joining McAfee & Taft, Brandon practiced with large national and international law firms in Dallas and in Washington, D.C.
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS LAW ALERT »
U.S. Supreme Court decision takeaway: Employers should review the terms of their health plans
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in US Airways, Inc. v. McCutchen, which has important implications for many employer-provided health plans.
HEALTH CARE REFORM »
Steps employers should be taking now
Since 2010, when the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act was passed, a gazillion news stories, articles and seminars have talked about what the act means and requires. For a time, many of us thought some or the entire act would be struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court. Then, after the high court issued its opinion in June, we were forced to realize that this giant compliance burden is here to stay. So, now what?
LAW ALERT »
U.S. Supreme Court upholds Health Care Reform law
At approximately 9:15 a.m. Central time this morning, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the Act). In a 5-4 decision delivered by Chief Justice John Roberts, the Court essentially upheld the entire Act, including the individual mandate. Interestingly, Roberts was the deciding vote in upholding [...]
PENSIONS AND RETIREMENT BENEFITS »
401(k) mistakes:
Don’t worry, you can fix them
Everyone makes mistakes. If you’re responsible for administering your employer’s 401(k) plan, I suspect you are smart and detail-oriented. I also suspect you hate to make mistakes, you lose sleep about them when they happen, and you hate the idea of costing your company money. But mistakes happen to everyone at some point. The good news is you can fix them. There is almost nothing that cannot be fixed.
7.5% in Apr 2013
5.0% in Mar 2013
5.6% in Mar 2013
Historical 
Release 
OKLAHOMA LAW ALERT »
Governor signs legislation overhauling workers’ compensation system
Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin signed legislation eliminating the current court-based workers’ compensation system and replacing it with a system that gives employers three options: (1) participate in an administrative system for resolving occupational-injuries; (2) establish an employee benefit plan that offers the same benefits as the administrative system; or (3) set up an arbitration program.
Continue Reading