The Department of Labor's Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans opened three days of hearings in Washington, D.C., Tuesday on outsourcing of fiduciary liability, among other issues.

The ERISA Advisory Council discusson on outsourcing will focus on identification of current industry practices and trends on the types of services, both fiduciary and nonfiduciary, that are being outsourced; the markets for service delivery; legal ERISA framework and plan sponsor and service provider responsibilities; and best practices in selection and monitoring of outsourced providers, including benchmarking and conflicts of interest.

In addition, it was expected to delve into the differences among the three fiduciary designations under ERISA 3(16), 3(21) and 3(38) and the scope of fiduciary liability in outsourcing; identification of contracting practices for outsourced services; and insurance coverage and ERISA bonding practices of outsourced service providers.