Sunday, October 26, 2014

Nomenclature, Part III

Emerging out of a conversation with my friend Peter H. is a realization that the ERISA/compensation practice has given rise to or at least made use of some pretty racy and otherwise interesting nomenclature. (See also my earlier nomenclature posts here and here.) Some examples, in no particular order:

SLOBs - a messy way to deal with trying to address 410(b) issues*

STD - something with which you DO want to get infected while dealing with Section 409A**

SARs - compensatory interests so prevalent that one might say they've gone viral

VCOCs - pronounced "vee cee oh cees" by some (including me), but "vee' cox" by those who must be trying to come up with sexy new devices with which to address "plan assets" issues from both sides***

CoC - is it any wonder that the 409A regs. gravitated to the altervative "CiC" terminology, which seems much less hard to use?

blown grandfather - something that just has to be awful in situations in which one is dealing with trying to satisfy transition rules that may no longer be enjoyed

PU - an acronym for phantom units so odorous that it (really) may help explain the evolution in terminology to "restricted stock units"

rabbi/secular/rabbicular trusts - oy

ERISA - forgive me for resort to the trite old standby of "Every Ridiculous Idea Since Adam"

There must be more, but I figured I'd get these out there.

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* Do they really think that "QSLOB" is a materially better acronym?

** I try to use "S-TD" in order to address this issue, but I'm not sure I'm really accomplishing much.

*** And then, of course, there are "springing VCOCs".

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