August 21, 2025 | GableGotwals is pleased to announce that 68 lawyers have been recognized in the 2026 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America, five of which were newly included, and one newly named on the “Ones to Watch” list. In addition, 11 GableGotwals attorneys were named 2026 “Lawyer of the Year.”

Best Lawyers has published their list for more than three decades. Its first international list was published in 2006, and since then has grown to provide lists in more than 75 countries. Lawyers on The Best Lawyers in America list are divided by geographic region and practice areas and are reviewed by their peers on the basis of professional expertise.

GableGotwals would like to congratulate the following attorneys named to 2026 The Best Lawyers in America list:

The Best Lawyers in America
Houston
	John D. Sullivan Commercial Litigation
Oklahoma City
	Ellen A. Adams Energy Law Employment Law – Management
	Jeffrey A. Curran Insurance Law Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants	Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
	E. Talitha Ebrite Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation	Energy Law Oil and Gas Law
	Jake M. Krattiger Commercial Litigation Oil and Gas Law
	Lance E. Leffel Commercial Litigation Construction Law	Insurance Law Litigation – Insurance
	Robert G. McCampbell Administrative / Regulatory Law Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation	Criminal Defense: White-Collar Government Contracts Government Relations Practice Health Care Law Litigation – Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy)
	Nick V. Merkley Commercial Litigation Energy Law	Litigation – Mergers and Acquisitions Oil and Gas Law
	J. Blake Patton Commercial Litigation
	Leo J. Portman Corporate Law Energy Law	Litigation – Trusts and Estates
	Brooks Richardson Commercial Litigation
	Rob F. Robertson Commercial Litigation Corporate Governance Law Energy Law Oil and Gas Law (Lawyer of the Year)	Litigation – Banking and Finance Litigation – Bankruptcy Litigation – Environmental Litigation – Real Estate
	Leasa M. Stewart Insurance Law Litigation – ERISA (Lawyer of the Year)	Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
	Amy M. Stipe Commercial Litigation Oil and Gas Law
	Jay P. Walters Litigation – Mergers and Acquisitions Litigation – Securities (Lawyer of the Year) Native American Law
Tulsa
	Steven J. Adams Commercial Litigation Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
	Jennifer R. Annis Litigation – Health Care Litigation – Insurance	Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants (Lawyer of the Year)
	John R. Barker Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law Securities / Capital Markets Law
	Brandon C. Bickle Banking and Finance Law Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Commercial Litigation
	David L. Bryant Arbitration Bet-the-Company Litigation	Commercial Litigation Mediation
	Frank J. Catalano Copyright Law Patent Law	Trademark Law
	Jason B. Coutant Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law
	John D. Dale Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
	Renee DeMoss Commercial Litigation Insurance Law	Litigation – ERISA
	Adam Doverspike Commercial Litigation Municipal Law
	Alicia J. Edwards Patent Law
	LeAnn Drummond Ellis Litigation – Trusts and Estates
	Grant Fitz Litigation – Insurance Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants	Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants
	Craig A. Fitzgerald Commercial Litigation Insurance Law	Litigation – Antitrust Litigation – Intellectual Property
	Amelia A. Fogleman Appellate Practice (Lawyer of the Year) Commercial Litigation	Litigation – Antitrust
	John A. Gaberino, Jr. Energy Law
	Jeffrey D. Hassell Banking and Finance Law Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law (Lawyer of the Year) Corporate Law
	Jeffrey T. Haughey Securities / Capital Markets Law Securities Regulation
	Steven G. Heinen Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law
	Philip D. Hixon Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation
	Andrew J. Hofland Commercial Litigation
	Thomas J. Hutchison Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law	Real Estate Law
	Susan I. Jordan Health Care Law Litigation – Health Care
	Stephen W. Lake Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation Corporate Law	Energy Law Mergers and Acquisitions Law Oil and Gas Law (Lawyer of the Year) Securities / Capital Markets Law Securities Regulation (Lawyer of the Year)
	Lloyd W. Landreth Litigation – Environmental (Lawyer of the Year) Natural Resources Law (Lawyer of the Year)
	James F. Lea III Copyright Law Patent Law	Trademark Law
	David Limekiller Commercial Litigation
	Justin A. Lollman Commercial Litigation
	Graydon D. Luthey, Jr. Commercial Litigation Corporate Compliance Law	Corporate Governance Law Corporate Law Gaming Law Native American Law
	David B. McKinney Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law Health Care Law	Litigation – ERISA Trusts and Estates
	Carrie McNeer Insurance Law
	Barbara M. Moschovidis Insurance Law
	Todd A. Nelson Copyright Law Litigation – Patent
	Richard B. Noulles Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation	Natural Resources Law Oil and Gas Law
	Terry D. Ragsdale Commercial Litigation Energy Law
	Paul E. Rossler Patent Law Technology Law	Trademark Law
	John Henry Rule Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation	Litigation – Banking and Finance Litigation – First Amendment
	Stephen A. Schuller Energy Law Land Use and Zoning Law	Litigation – Real Estate Real Estate Law
	Deborah C. Shallcross Appellate Practice Arbitration	Family Law
	Trent Shores Commercial Litigation Native American Law
	Lisa T. Silvestri Energy Law (Lawyer of the Year) Insurance Law
	Tina Soin Banking and Finance Law
	Timothy J. Sullivan, Jr. Commercial Litigation Energy Law
	Sidney K. Swinson Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Bet-the-Company Litigation Litigation – Bankruptcy
	Chris S. Thrutchley Employment Law – Management Labor Law – Management	Litigation – Labor and Employment
	Mia Vahlberg Commercial Litigation Corporate Law	Energy Law Insurance Law (Lawyer of the Year)
	David G. Woodral Patent Law Trademark Law
	Scott R. Zingerman Copyright Law Patent Law (Lawyer of the Year)	Trade Secrets Law
Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America
Oklahoma City
	Gerard D’Emilio Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation
	Scott Kiplinger Litigation – Construction Oil and Gas Law
	Ashlyn Smith Insurance Law Oil and Gas Law
Tulsa
	Barrett L. Powers Commercial Litigation Insurance Law
	Alex R. Telarik Commercial Litigation Oil and Gas Law

August 15, 2024 | GableGotwals is pleased to announce that 74 lawyers have been recognized in the 2025 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America, three of which were newly included, and two newly named on the “Ones to Watch” list. In addition, seven GableGotwals attorneys were named 2025 “Lawyer of the Year.”

Best Lawyers has published their list for more than three decades. Its first international list was published in 2006, and since then has grown to provide lists in more than 75 countries. Lawyers on The Best Lawyers in America list are divided by geographic region and practice areas and are reviewed by their peers on the basis of professional expertise.

GableGotwals would like to congratulate the following attorneys named to 2025 The Best Lawyers in America list:

The Best Lawyers in America
Houston
	John D. Sullivan Commercial Litigation
Oklahoma City
	Ellen A. Adams Energy Law
	Jeffrey A. Curran Insurance Law Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants	Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
	E. Talitha Ebrite Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation	Energy Law Oil and Gas Law
	Jake M. Krattiger Commercial Litigation Oil and Gas Law
	Lance E. Leffel Commercial Litigation Construction Law	Insurance Law Litigation – Insurance
	Robert G. McCampbell Administrative / Regulatory Law Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation	Criminal Defense: White-Collar Government Contracts Government Relations Practice Health Care Law Litigation – Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy)
	Nick V. Merkley Commercial Litigation Energy Law	Litigation – Mergers and Acquisitions
	J. Blake Patton Commercial Litigation
	Leo J. Portman Corporate Law Energy Law	Litigation – Trusts and Estates
	Brooks Richardson Commercial Litigation
	Rob F. Robertson Commercial Litigation Corporate Governance Law Energy Law Oil and Gas Law	Litigation – Banking and Finance Litigation – Bankruptcy Litigation – Environmental Litigation – Real Estate
	G. Blaine Schwabe III Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation
	Leasa M. Stewart Insurance Law Litigation – ERISA
	Amy M. Stipe Commercial Litigation Oil and Gas Law
	Jay P. Walters Litigation – Mergers and Acquisitions Litigation – Securities Native American Law
Tulsa
	Steven J. Adams Commercial Litigation Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants
	Jennifer R. Annis Litigation – Health Care Litigation – Insurance	Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants
	John R. Barker Banking and Finance Law (Lawyer of the Year) Corporate Law Securities / Capital Markets Law
	Brandon C. Bickle Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Commercial Litigation
	David L. Bryant Arbitration Bet-the-Company Litigation	Commercial Litigation Mediation
	Frank J. Catalano Copyright Law Patent Law	Trademark Law
	Jason B. Coutant Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law
	John D. Dale Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
	Renee DeMoss Commercial Litigation Insurance Law	Litigation – ERISA
	Alicia J. Edwards Patent Law
	LeAnn Drummond Ellis Litigation – Trusts and Estates
	Grant Fitz Litigation – Insurance
	Craig A. Fitzgerald Commercial Litigation Insurance Law	Litigation – Antitrust Litigation – Intellectual Property
	Amelia A. Fogleman Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation	Litigation – Antitrust
	John A. Gaberino, Jr. Energy Law
	Robert J. Getchell Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Litigation – Real Estate
	Jeffrey D. Hassell Banking and Finance Law Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Corporate Law (Lawyer of the Year)
	Jeffrey T. Haughey Securities / Capital Markets Law Securities Regulation
	Steven G. Heinen Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law
	Philip D. Hixon Appellate Practice (Lawyer of the Year) Commercial Litigation
	Andrew J. Hofland Commercial Litigation
	Thomas J. Hutchison Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law	Real Estate Law
	Susan I. Jordan Health Care Law Litigation – Health Care
	Stephen W. Lake Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation Corporate Law	Energy Law (Lawyer of the Year) Mergers and Acquisitions Law Oil and Gas Law Securities / Capital Markets Law (Lawyer of the Year) Securities Regulation
	Lloyd W. Landreth Litigation – Environmental Natural Resources Law
	James F. Lea III Copyright Law Patent Law	Trademark Law (Lawyer of the Year)
	David Limekiller Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation
	Graydon D. Luthey, Jr. Commercial Litigation Corporate Compliance Law	Corporate Governance Law Corporate Law Gaming Law Native American Law
	David B. McKinney Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law Health Care Law	Litigation – ERISA (Lawyer of the Year) Trusts and Estates
	Todd A. Nelson Copyright Law Litigation – Patent
	Richard B. Noulles Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation	Natural Resources Law Oil and Gas Law
	Terry D. Ragsdale Commercial Litigation Energy Law
	Paul E. Rossler Patent Law Technology Law	Trademark Law
	John Henry Rule Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation	Litigation – Banking and Finance Litigation – First Amendment
	Stephen A. Schuller Energy Law Land Use and Zoning Law	Litigation – Real Estate Real Estate Law
	Deborah C. Shallcross Appellate Practice Arbitration	Family Law
	Trent Shores Commercial Litigation Native American Law
	Lisa T. Silvestri Energy Law Insurance Law
	Timothy J. Sullivan, Jr. Commercial Litigation Energy Law
	Sidney K. Swinson Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Bet-the-Company Litigation Litigation – Bankruptcy
	Chris S. Thrutchley Employment Law – Management Labor Law – Management	Litigation – Labor and Employment
	Mia Vahlberg Commercial Litigation Corporate Law	Energy Law Insurance Law Oil and Gas Law
	Tom C. Vincent II FinTech Practice Privacy and Data Security Law
	David G. Woodral Patent Law (Lawyer of the Year) Trademark Law
	Scott R. Zingerman Copyright Law Patent Law	Trade Secrets Law
Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America
Oklahoma City
	Gerard D’Emilio Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation
	Scott Kiplinger Litigation – Construction Oil and Gas Law
	Ashlyn Smith Oil and Gas Law
	Tim Sowecke Energy Law Environmental Law	Natural Resources Law
Tulsa
	Emily Collins Litigation – Trusts and Estates Trusts and Estates
	Madeline Cook Litigation – Intellectual Property
	Adam Doverspike Administrative / Regulatory Law Appellate Practice	Commercial Litigation Litigation – Construction Municipal Law
	Justin A. Lollman Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation	Criminal Defense: White-Collar Labor and Employment Law – Management
	Barrett L. Powers Commercial Litigation Insurance Law

GableGotwals is pleased to announce that 74 lawyers have been recognized in the 2024 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America, four of which were newly included, and seven newly named on the “Ones to Watch” list. In addition, eight GableGotwals attorneys were named 2024 “Lawyer of the Year.”

Best Lawyers has published their list for more than three decades. Its first international list was published in 2006, and since then has grown to provide lists in more than 75 countries. Lawyers on The Best Lawyers in America list are divided by geographic region and practice areas and are reviewed by their peers on the basis of professional expertise.

GableGotwals would like to congratulate the following attorneys named to 2024 The Best Lawyers in America list:

	Ellen A. Adams Oklahoma City	Energy Law
	Steven J. Adams Tulsa	Commercial Litigation Mass Tort Litigation/Class Action-Defendants
	John R. Barker Tulsa	Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law Securities/Capital Markets Law
	Brandon C. Bickle Tulsa	Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Commercial Litigation
	David L. Bryant Tulsa	Arbitration Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation Mediation
	Meagan E.W. Burrows Tulsa	“Ones to Watch” Healthcare Law Business Organizations (Including LLCs and Partnerships) Banking and Finance Law
	Frank J. Catalano Tulsa	Copyright Law Patent Law Trademark Law
	Emily R. Collins Oklahoma City	Litigation – Trusts and Estates
	Casey Cooper Tulsa	Commercial Litigation
	Jason B. Coutant Tulsa	Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law
	Jeffrey A. Curran Oklahoma City	Insurance Law Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants Product Liability Litigation – Defendants
	John D. Dale Tulsa	Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
	Gerard M. D’Emilio Oklahoma City	“Ones to Watch” Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation
	Renee DeMoss Tulsa	Insurance Law Commercial Litigation Litigation – ERISA(Lawyer of the Year)
	Adam C. Doverspike Tulsa	“Ones to Watch” Administrative / Regulatory Law Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation Municipal Law Litigation – Construction
	E. Talitha Ebrite Oklahoma City	Oil and Gas Law Energy Law Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation
	Alicia J. Edwards Tulsa	Patent Law
	LeAnn Drummond Ellis Tulsa	Litigation – Trusts and Estates
	Philip Feist Tulsa	Trusts and Estates
	Grant A. Fitz Tulsa	Litigation – Insurance
	Craig A. Fitzgerald Tulsa	Commercial Litigation Insurance Law Litigation – Antitrust Litigation – Intellectual Property
	Amelia A. Fogleman Tulsa	Appellate Practice (Lawyer of the Year) Commercial Litigation Litigation – Antitrust
	John A. Gaberino, Jr. Tulsa	Energy Law
	Robert J. Getchell Tulsa	Bankruptcy and Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law Litigation – Real Estate
	Jeffrey D. Hassell Tulsa	Banking and Finance Law (Lawyer of the Year) Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Corporate Law
	Jeffrey T. Haughey Tulsa	Securities/Capital Markets Law Securities Regulation
	Steven G. Heinen Tulsa	Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law
	Philip D. Hixon Tulsa	Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation
	Andrew J. Hofland Tulsa	Commercial Litigation
	Thomas J. Hutchison Tulsa	Banking and Finance Law Corporate Law Real Estate Law
	Susan Jordan Tulsa	Healthcare Law Litigation – Healthcare
	Scott Kiplinger Oklahoma City	“Ones to Watch” Litigation – Construction Oil and Gas Law
	Jake Krattiger Oklahoma City	Commercial Litigation Oil and Gas Law
	Stephen W. Lake Tulsa	Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation Corporate Law Energy Law Mergers and Acquisitions Law Oil and Gas Law Securities/Capital Markets Law Securities Regulation
	Lloyd W. Landreth Tulsa	Litigation – Environmental (Lawyer of the Year) Natural Resources Law
	James F. Lea, III Tulsa	Copyright Law Patent Law (Lawyer of the Year) Trademark Law
	Lance Leffel Oklahoma City	Commercial Litigation Insurance Law Construction Law Litigation – Insurance
	David P. Limekiller Tulsa	Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation
	Justin A. Lollman Tulsa	“Ones to Watch” Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation Criminal Defense: White-Collar Labor and Employment Law – Management
	Graydon Dean Luthey, Jr. Tulsa	Commercial Litigation Corporate Compliance Law Corporate Governance Law Corporate Law Gaming Law Native American Law
	Robert G. McCampbell Oklahoma City	Administrative / Regulatory Law  (Lawyer of the Year) Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation Criminal Defense: White-Collar Government Contracts Government Relations Practice (Lawyer of the Year) Healthcare Law Litigation – Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy)
	David B. McKinney Tulsa	Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law Healthcare Law Litigation – ERISA Trusts and Estates
	Nick Merkley Oklahoma City	Energy Law Commercial Litigation
	Motahareh H. Nickel Oklahoma City	“Ones to Watch” Banking and Finance Law Mergers and Acquisitions Law
	Todd A. Nelson Tulsa	Copyright Law Litigation – Patent
	Richard B. Noulles Tulsa	Natural Resources Law (Lawyer of the Year) Commercial Litigation Bet-the-Company Litigation Oil and Gas Law
	Leo J. Portman Oklahoma City	Corporate Law Energy Law Litigation – Trusts and Estates
	Barrett Powers Tulsa	“Ones to Watch” Commercial Litigation
	Terry D. Ragsdale Tulsa	Commercial Litigation Energy Law
	Rob F. Robertson Oklahoma City	Commercial Litigation Corporate Governance Law Energy Law Litigation – Banking and Finance Litigation – Bankruptcy Litigation – Environmental Litigation – Real Estate Oil and Gas Law
	Paul E. Rossler Tulsa	Patent Law Technology Law Trademark Law
	John Henry Rule Tulsa	Banking and Finance Law Commercial Litigation Litigation – Banking and Finance Litigation – First Amendment
	John D. Russell Tulsa	Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation
	Stephen A. Schuller Tulsa	Energy Law Land Use and Zoning Law Litigation – Real Estate Real Estate Law
	G. Blaine Schwabe, III Oklahoma City	Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation
	Deborah C. Shallcross Tulsa	Appellate Practice Arbitration Family Law
	Trent Shores Tulsa	Commercial Litigation
	Lisa T. Silvestri Tulsa	Energy Law Insurance Law
	Ashlyn M. Smith Oklahoma City	“Ones to Watch” Oil and Gas Law
	Leasa M. Stewart Oklahoma City	Insurance Law Litigation – ERISA
	Amy M. Stipe Oklahoma City	Commercial Litigation Oil and Gas Law
	Timothy J. Sullivan, Jr. Tulsa	Energy Law Commercial Litigation
	John D. Sullivan Houston	Commercial Litigation
	Sidney K. Swinson Tulsa	Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law (Lawyer of the Year) Bet-the-Company Litigation Litigation – Bankruptcy
	Chris S. Thrutchley Tulsa	Employment Law – Management Labor Law – Management
	Mia Vahlberg Tulsa	Commercial Litigation Corporate Law Energy Law Insurance Law Oil and Gas Law
	Tom C. Vincent II Tulsa	FinTech Practice Information Technology Law Privacy and Data Security Law
	Jay P. Walters Oklahoma City	Litigation – Mergers and Acquisitions Litigation – Securities Native American Law
	Brad W. Welsh Tulsa	Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation
	Paula M. Williams Oklahoma City	Employment Law – Management Litigation – Labor and Employment
	David G. Woodral Tulsa	Patent Law Trademark Law
	Scott R. Zingerman Tulsa	Copyright Law Patent Law Trade Secrets Law

Best Lawyers lists are compiled based on an exhaustive peer review evaluation, therefore, honorees are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be included.  However, to be listed on the Best Lawyers web site, there is a required advertising fee.

January 20, 2023 | By: David B. McKinney, James M. Scears, and Emily Ramseyer

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Public Law No. 117-328, signed into law by the President on December 29, 2022, includes the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0 Act”), providing many favorable changes in federal tax law affecting retirement benefits.

The following summarizes some of the significant changes enacted.

Retirement Benefit Provision	Existing Law in 2022	SECURE 2.0 Act	Discussion and Effect
Required beginning date of retirement distributions	Plan participants and IRA owners must begin taking distributions at a required beginning date of age 72.	Plan participants and IRA owners must begin taking distributions at a required beginning date of age 73 in 2023 and 75 starting in 2033.	The new required beginning dates allow plan participants and IRA owners to defer taxable plan distributions for longer periods.
Early Withdrawal of Retirement Benefits	Withdrawals are allowed for stated hardship situations without incurring an additional 10% income tax.	SECURE 2.0 Act provides a $1,000 distribution exception for emergency expense if unforeseeable or for immediate financial needs, after 2023.	Access to retirement plan accounts is provided for expenses related to emergencies without incurring an additional 10% income tax.
Tax Credit for Retirement Saving Changed to Saver’s Match	A refundable federal income tax credit is allowed to certain individuals who make contributions to 401(k) plans and IRAs.	SECURE 2.0 Act changes the tax credit to a matching contribution to be deposited to the 401(k) account or IRA of an individual, after 2026, subject to limitations.	An individual saving by contributing to a 401(k) plan or IRA gets a matching contribution of 50% of his or her individual contribution, up to $2,000.
Catch-Up Contributions	Under the law in 2022, employees attaining age 50 are permitted to make catch-up contributions under a retirement plan in excess of generally applicable limits.	SECURE 2.0 Act increases the catch-up contribution limits after 2024 for individuals who have attained ages 60 thru 63, indexed for inflation.	Substantially increased  retirement plan catch-up contributions will be allowed for employees approaching normal retirement age.
Student Loan Repayment Matching Contributions	Under law existing in 2022 there is no provision for student loan repayments to be taken into account with respect to employee contributions to a 401(k) plan.	SECURE 2.0 Act  allows matching contributions  under a 401(k) plan after 2023 for student loan repayments made by the employee for qualified higher education expenses.	Student loan repayment matching contributions help an employee add to retirement savings while paying off a student loan that reduces his/her ability to contribute to a 401(k) plan.

The SECURE 2.0 Act provides numerous other changes in federal tax law governing retirement benefits and employer sponsorship and administration of retirement plans. The changes include provisions to increase retirement savings by individuals, simplify and clarify retirement plan rules, make technical amendments to previously enacted law, enact administrative and revenue provisions, and provide for federal judge retirement plans.

If you have questions or would like to discuss the SECURE 2.0 Act, how it may affect you, an employer, or a retirement plan, please contact any attorney of GableGotwals you know or our Tax Law Practice Group, which includes:

David B. McKinney 918-595-4860 dmckinney@gablelaw.com	James M. Scears 918-595-4879 jscears@gablelaw.com	Emily Ramseyer

This alert is provided for information purposes. It does not contain legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship and is not intended or written to be used and may not be used by any person for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed under federal or state tax laws. The information and explanations stated in this alert are based on initial consideration of new law after its enactment and may be subject to different interpretations of the law and its meaning and effect in the future.

Best Lawyers® in America has named 16 GableGotwals attorneys to the 2023 “Lawyer of the Year” list. Only a single lawyer in each practice area and designated metropolitan area is honored as the “Lawyer of the Year,” making this accolade particularly significant. These lawyers are selected based on particularly impressive voting averages received during the peer-review assessments.

Receiving this designation reflects the high level of respect a lawyer has earned among other leading lawyers in the same communities and the same practice areas for their abilities, their professionalism, and their integrity.

Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence.

The following GableGotwals attorneys were selected as a 2023 “Lawyer of the Year:”

	Steven J. Adams Tulsa	Mass Tort Litigation/Class Action-Defendants
	Jason B. Coutant Tulsa	Corporate Law
	Dale E. Cottingham Oklahoma City	Eminent Domain and Condemnation Law
	John D. Dale Tulsa	Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
	Alicia J. Edwards Tulsa	Patent Law
	Robert J. Getchell Tulsa	Litigation – Real Estate
	Jeffrey D. Hassell Tulsa	Litigation – Banking and Finance
	Lloyd W. Landreth Tulsa	Natural Resources Law
	Graydon Dean Luthey, Jr. Tulsa	Corporate Compliance Law
	Robert G. McCampbell Oklahoma City	Healthcare Law
	David B. McKinney Tulsa	Healthcare Law
	Richard B. Noulles Tulsa	Bet-the Company Litigation
	Craig M. Regens Oklahoma City	Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and
	Ronald N. Ricketts Tulsa	Litigation – Environmental
	Jay P. Walters Oklahoma City	Litigation – Securities
	Paula M. Williams Oklahoma City	Employment Law – Management

Best Lawyers lists are compiled based on an exhaustive peer review evaluation, therefore, honorees are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be included.  However, to be listed on the Best Lawyers web site, there is a required advertising fee.

2022 past honorees

2021 past honorees

2020 past honorees

2019 past honorees

July 20, 2021 | By: Sheppard F. Miers, Jr. and David B. McKinney

The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) has issued important new guidance to update its Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (“EPCRS”).  The guidance, Revenue Procedure 2021-30, was published on July 16, 2021 (“Rev. Proc. 2021-30”).

The update provides new favorable procedures for making corrections to qualified pension and profit sharing plans to maintain their tax favored status.

The EPCRS guidance and procedures permits employers that are qualified plan sponsors to correct errors or failures to meet plan qualification requirements under section 401(a) and related provisions of the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”). The EPCRS correction procedures permit plans to be brought into necessary compliance and thereby continue to provide employees with retirement benefits on a tax-favored basis.

EPCRS includes varying forms and levels of correction procedures for qualified plans.  This generally includes (1) self-correction (SCP) by a plan sponsor without payment of any fee or sanction, (2) voluntary correction (VCP) with IRS approval at any time before an IRS audit, with the plan sponsor paying a limited fee and receiving IRS’s approval for correction of a qualified plan, and (3) correction on audit by the IRS (Audit CAP) allowing a plan sponsor to correct a plan qualification failure and pay a sanction, based on the nature, extent and severity of the failure.

The IRS update provided in Rev. Proc. 2021-30 is a limited update and is published by the IRS primarily to address certain situations and correction procedures, and  to:

• expand IRS guidance on Overpayments;
• eliminate an anonymous submission procedure under VCP, effective January 1, 2022;
• add an anonymous, no-fee, VCP pre-submission conference procedure, effective January 1, 2022;
• extend the end of the SCP correction period for significant failures by one year (which has the result of also extending the safe harbor correction method for Employee Elective Deferral Failures lasting more than three months but not beyond the extended SCP correction period for significant failures);
• expand the ability of a Plan Sponsor to correct an Operational Failure under a SCP by plan amendment; and
• extend by three years the sunset of the safe harbor correction method available for certain Employee Elective Deferral Failures associated with missed elective deferrals for eligible employees who are subject to an automatic contribution feature in a § 401(k) plan or § 403(b) Plan (from December 31, 2020, to December 31, 2023).

The updated EPCRS procedures provided in Rev. Proc. 2021-30 appear to continue, refine and expand the ways employers sponsoring retirement plans can maintain tax qualification of a plan with reduced administrative difficulty and expense.

If you would like to discuss the EPCRS update provided by Rev. Proc. 2021-30, or any other qualified retirement plan matters, please contact your GableGotwals attorney, or a member of our Tax Law Practice Group which includes:

David B. McKinney 918-595-4860 dmckinney@gablelaw.com

This alert is provided for information purposes. It does not contain legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship and is not intended or written to be used and may not be used by any person for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed under federal or state tax laws. The information and explanations stated in this alert are based on initial consideration of the law after its enactment and may be subject to different interpretation of the law and its meaning and effect in the future.