Introduction
Mark L. Stember is a partner in Nixon Peabody’s Employee Benefits practice group. Mark represents private and public companies in a variety of issues, including health and welfare benefits, disability and leave benefits, employee fringe and lifestyle benefits, health and data privacy, Medicare and state insurance rules, and tax code compliance.
My focus
I have extensive experience assisting clients with health and welfare plans, HIPAA privacy, flexible compensation, fringe benefit plans, adoption assistance, maternity support, fertility support, tuition and loan reimbursement, leave and disability plans and policies, and life insurance plans. Additionally, I have experience working with clients on telemedicine, on-site clinics, digital health, and have explored the use of AI in benefits administration.
With a cross-practice focus on benefits and privacy, largely situated in the food and beverage and media and entertainment industries, I strive to achieve the most practical and efficient solutions consistent with the client’s culture. Notable transactions that highlight my capabilities and breadth of experience are:
- Formulated health, disability, leave, and lifestyle benefits for large public and private companies
- Designed the first-of-its-kind smoking cessation and wellness program for a public company
- Created the first private exchange for retiree health reimbursement arrangements
- Developed integrated leave management programs that take a holistic look at employee work-life balance. These programs integrate disability, vacation, sick leave, paid time off, parental/caregiver leaves, all within the confines of federal, state, and local leave laws.
Looking ahead
The workforce is undergoing tremendous changes as there is a wide employee age range across industries. Employers must be able to support both older employees with benefits such as parental and caregiver leave, and younger employees with benefits such as tuition and loan reimbursement, and fertility and maternity support. Additionally, employers continue to turn to digital health entities to efficiently deliver benefits to its workforce.
Admitted to practice
District of Columbia
Iowa
Education
University of Missouri, LL.M.
Mitchell Hamline School of Law, J.D.
St. Cloud State University, B.S.
Professional activities
- Member of the Employers Council for Flexible Compensation Technical Advisory Council
- Contributing Editor for the Employer’s Guide to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
- Writer for the ECFC Flex Reporter
- Writer for the Employer’s Guide to HIPAA (2010–2014)
- Member of the Electronic Data Interchange—HIPAA Privacy and Security Employer Workgroup
- Chair of the Health and Welfare plan Design and Funding subcommittee for the Employee Benefits Committee of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation (2002–2012)
- Prior Co-chair of the JCEB Health and Welfare Benefit Plans National Institute
- Fellow of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel
- Member of the Bloomberg BNA Compensation Planning Advisory Board
Recognition
- Ranked Band 3 by Chambers 2024 USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business for Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation
- Recognized in the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers in America® for Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law and ERISA Litigation
- Recognized as a “Super Lawyer” for Employee Benefits Law in Washington DC by Super Lawyers magazine in 2024
- Appointed co-chair of the CHIP Employer Coverage Coordination Working Group by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Labor (2009–2010)
Insights And Happenings
View AllProfessionals in the Practice Area
View AllEric Paley
Partner / Team Leader, Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation- Rochester
- Office:+1 585.263.1012
- epaley@nixonpeabody.com
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Damian A. Myers
Partner/ Fiduciary Task Force Co-Lead- Washington DC
- Office:+1 202.585.8485
- dmyers@nixonpeabody.com
-