Carolyn M. Cumbee, J.D., LL.M.
Carolyn is a Senior Associate Attorney with Ferenczy Benefits Law Center in Atlanta, Georgia. With over 18 years experience working with qualified plans, Carolyn assists clients with design, implementation, and administration of tax-qualified retirement plans (including 401(k), defined benefit, cash balance, and 403(b) plans). She frequently advises clients about compliance with ERISA rules, Internal Revenue Code rules, and the Internal Revenue Service’s and Department of Labor’s formal and informal correction programs.
She has assisted in employee benefits due diligence with respect to mergers and acquisitions, Department of Labor and Internal Revenue Service audits, and advised clients on best practices and methods for correcting a wide range of plan document and administrative failures. She also has significant experience in analyzing controlled group and affiliated service group matters.
Prior to joining Ferenczy Benefits Law Center, Carolyn worked as an ERISA attorney for a third-party administrator for over 13 years. She also worked as a law clerk for a Chicago-based law firm on a variety of areas of law. She also independently managed over 150 cases from complaint to hearing as a law clerk for the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
Carolyn earned a B.B.A. in Finance, Investment, & Banking and a B.A. in Legal Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She earned her Juris Doctorate from the Chicago-Kent College of Law. In 2012, she earned her LL.M. in Employee Benefits, with Honors from the University of Illinois-Chicago (formerly known as John Marshall Law School). She is admitted to practice law in Illinois.