The 3(16) is at the top of the fiduciary food chain and, in general, has ultimate responsibility for the plan and its oversight. Sometimes this role is referred to as the Plan Administrator and is usually the plan sponsor.
The duty and role of the 3(38) fiduciary is spelled out in ERISA. The 3(38) fiduciary is responsible to assess and change the plan’s investment line-up as necessary. They make these changes based on their analysis and assessment process.
The 3(21) fiduciary is the utility player in the fiduciary world. 3(21) fiduciaries duties can be expansive or narrow based on the fiduciary agreement. That said, in operation most 3(21) fiduciary service providers offer advisory services in terms of investment recommendations to the plan officials. These services again are usually advisory in nature and other plan officials make the final investment determinations.
The 408g fiduciary is sanctioned to provide investment advice to the plan participants. The 408g fiduciary has no responsibility at the plan governance level other than working with the participants. An advantage to the plan sponsor in using a 408g fiduciary is the plan sponsor is not liable for the 408g fiduciaries recommendations to the participants. Conversely, the 408g fiduciary is not responsible for the actions of other fiduciaries under the co-fiduciary liability rules.
