MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Shumaker welcomes Associate Sidney T. Portner to the firm, where her practice focuses on employee benefits and Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) matters, including work with multiemployer health, pension, and apprenticeship plans. She will help plan sponsors, trustees, and fiduciaries design, administer, and maintain compliant plans with confidence.
Sidney advises on regulatory compliance and fiduciary obligations and drafts and amends plan documents, helping clients align plan operations with governing requirements and the governance responsibilities involved in managing employee benefit plans.
“Employee benefit plans carry significant responsibilities for the trustees and sponsors who oversee them, and our clients rely on advisors who understand both the regulatory detail and the real-world demands of running a plan,” said Scott Newsom, Partner and Benefits Service Line Leader at Shumaker. “Sidney brings a thoughtful, thorough approach to ERISA and multiemployer plan matters, and her skills will be a valuable addition for the clients we serve.”
Prior to joining Shumaker, Sidney gained experience through law school clerkships in civil litigation and business law, as well as a judicial externship in the Family Division of the Hennepin County District Court. Before attending law school, she worked as a patent paralegal and patent assistant, supporting domestic and international patent prosecution matters.
Shumaker's Benefits Service Line helps employers, organized labor, and fiduciaries create, optimize, and protect compensation and benefits solutions, offering practical guidance on costs, liability, and compliance (including Taft-Hartley and ERISA matters) and court representation when necessary. We also counsel individuals and groups negotiating equity, compensation, benefits, and separation packages.