SEND AN E-MAIL TO THIS FELLOWHeidi Lyon
Grand Rapids, MI
Heidi Lyon is a partner in the Grand Rapids office of Warner Norcross + Judd LLP. For over 20 years, Heidi has centered her practice on a wide range of retirement plan matters (including 401(k), 403(b), 457, defined benefit, cash balance and profit-sharing retirement plans) and executive compensation.
Heidi first gained experience in the employee benefits area through an internship with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of the Solicitor and later entered private practice with a focus on employee benefits. Heidi serves a diverse client base, including privately held and publicly traded global, national and local employers of all sizes, plan fiduciary boards and committees, colleges and universities, hospitals, nonprofits, governmental entities and professional services firms.
As a lawyer who’s passionate about using her technical knowledge to help clients in achieving their goals and promote employee benefits, Heidi advises on designing, operating and maintaining compliant employee benefit plans that attract, retain and engage a talented and diverse workforce at a manageable cost. Heidi assists with understanding and navigating the complex legal framework that applies to retirement plans as well as industry trends. She also works closely with plan fiduciaries to interpret plans, understand their responsibilities, assess risk, develop prudent processes, correct errors, engage and monitor service providers, and provide audit and investigation support.
On the deferred compensation side of her practice, Heidi advises on designing and maintaining deferred compensation plans, bonus programs, SERPs, incentive plans, phantom equity and employment agreements to attract and retain the finest business leaders and employees in a tax-efficient manner. Her work enables clients to reward executives and employees for delivering their best performance and bolstering the overall success of the workforce and organization.
Heidi is actively involved in organizations dedicated to discussion, education and advancement of employee benefits, legal developments, legislation, regulatory guidance and compliance, including the American Bar Association (Employee Benefits Committee, the IRS TE/GE Council (Great Lakes and the National Joint Council), and the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA). She also is a regular speaker and writer on employee benefits legal developments, best practices, compliance and fiduciary training. Heidi routinely presents at programs designed to educate and update human resources, legal and accounting professionals on employee benefits, has served on a team of Adjunct Faculty Members teaching a course on employee benefits at Grand Valley State University, and co-authors a chapter on QDROs for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education in Michigan.
