Kristina Zanotti is a partner in the investment management practice group, concentrating in the ERISA fiduciary and derivatives practice areas.
In the ERISA fiduciary practice area, Kristina has substantial experience advising clients regarding fiduciary responsibility matters under ERISA. She assists corporations, investment advisers, banks and trust companies, fund complexes, and other financial institutions and financial services clients, in navigating ERISA’s prohibited transaction restrictions and exemptions. Kristina co-authors chapters on ERISA in two corporate and securities law treatises for the Practicing Law Institute and also teaches a class on ERISA for the D.C. Bar.
In the derivatives area, Kristina represents financial services clients in connection with swap and other derivatives transactions and in negotiating master agreements, including ISDAs, Master Repurchase Agreements, Master Securities Forward Transaction Agreements, futures agreements, cleared derivatives documentation, and related agreements.
- Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2023 for work in Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law
- American Bar Association, Subcommittee on Trust and Investment Services (Business Law Section, Banking Law Committee) – co-chair 2018-2021, co-vice chair 2015-2018
- Women in Investment Management – member
- Worldwide Employee Benefits Network – member 2014-2019
- Presenter, K&L Gates Investment Management Conference, “Private Funds and Adviser Regulation - Socially Responsible Investing and ERISA,” Washington, DC, November 8, 2018.
- Panelist, American Bar Association: Business Law Section Meeting, “ERISA Zombie Apocalypse: Making sense of the DOL Rule, SEC Proposal and Court Rulings,” Austin, TX, September 13, 2018.
- Presenter, National Regulatory Services/Investment Adviser Association Webinar, “Mandates Beyond the Advisers Act: Anti-Money Laundering, ERISA Compliance and ‘34 Act Section 13 Reporting for Investment Advisers,” May 8, 2018.
- Presenter, K&L Gates Webinar, “The DOL’s Fiduciary Rule - Q&A Session on the Latest Developments,” April 5, 2018.
- Instructor, D.C. Bar, “Fiduciary Responsibility and Participant Rights - Intermediate Level,” Washington, DC, November 13, 2017.
- Presenter, Impact 2016, “The New DOL Fiduciary Rule: What it Means and How it Applies to You,” San Diego, CA, October 25, 2016.
- Presenter, Mutual Fund Directors Forum Webinar, “The Department of Labor's New Fiduciary Regulation: Considerations for Mutual Fund Directors,” September 20, 2016.
- Panelist, American Bar Association: Business Law Section Meeting, “Complying with the New DOL Fiduciary Rule: What General Business and Financial Institutions Lawyers Need to Know,” Boston, MA, September 9, 2016.
- Presenter, The Investment Adviser Association Webinar, “What SEC-Registered Investment Advisers Need to Know About the New ERISA Fiduciary Rules,” May 17, 2016.
- Presenter, K&L Gates Live Event, “Part II: The Department of Labor's new ‘conflict of interest rule’," Boston, MA, May 12, 2016.
- Presenter, K&L Gates Webinar, “Non-U.S. Webinar: The U.S. Department of Labor's new ‘conflict of interest rule,’” May 5, 2016.
- Presenter, K&L Gates Live Event, “Part I: The Department of Labor's new ‘conflict of interest rule,’" New York, NY, May 4, 2016.
- Presenter, Mutual Funds Education Alliance Webinar, “The DOL Fiduciary Rule Proposal: Top Issues for Mutual Fund Complexes,” Jan. 13, 2016.
- Panelist, American Bar Association: Business Law Section Meeting, “Are You Sure You’re Not a Fiduciary? What General Business and Financial Institution Lawyers Need to Know About the DOL Proposal to Expand Who is a Fiduciary to Benefit Plans and IRAs,” Chicago, IL, Sept. 17, 2015.
- Instructor, D.C. Bar, “ERISA Basics Series, Part 4: Fiduciary Responsibilities and Participant Rights,” Washington, DC, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016.
- "Private Equity in 401(k) Plans - A Trillion Dollar Opportunity?," Journal of Investment Compliance, December 2020
- Regulation Best Interest: You May Be More Prepared Than You Thought, Benefits Law Journal, Vol. 32, No. 4, Winter 2019
- Fiduciary Rule Remnants: The Strange Case of Field Assistance Bulletin 2018-02, Benefits Law Journal, Vol. 32, No. 4, Spring 2019
- “ERISA Issues,” Variable Annuities and Other Insurance Investment Products (Clifford E. Kirsch ed., 3d ed. 2018), co-authored with William A. Schmidt.
- The Department of Labor's New Conflict-of-Interest Regulations, The Review of Securities & Commodities Regulation, Vol. 49, No. 13, 20 July 2016
- “The expanding reach of U.S. Federal Retirement Regulations,” Thomson Reuters Accelus, co-authored with Robert L. Sichel, June 16, 2016.
- “Beyond the Soundbite: Why the New DOL Fiduciary Rule Means More Than Acting in a Client’s Best Interest,” Benefits Law Journal, Vol. 29, No. 2, Summer 2016
- “ERISA Issues for Mutual Fund Advisers,” Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds Regulation (Clifford E. Kirsch ed., 3d ed. 2011), co-authored with William A. Schmidt.
