ERISA may apply to your separation arrangements. ERISA is the federal law which applies to almost all employee benefit claims.ERISA will generally apply to severance arrangements that provide for multiple payments and particularized criteria for employee qualification. An employer that maintains a severance plan that is subject to ERISA but fails to follow ERISA's requirements may be subject to potential penalties. This blog post will give an overview of how ERISA can impact your severance agreement. This sixth edition discusses the wide range of issues that arise in litigation under ERISA. Section I addresses the Supreme Court's decisions defining ERISA's. Such oneoff severance agreements can constitute an ERISA plan under the right circumstances, even if the agreement doesn't mention ERISA.