A Practice Note explaining the effect of U.S. bankruptcy law on retirement plans, specifically focusing on those plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). It describes bankruptcy provisions affecting retirement plans, ERISA provisions and court decisions relevant to plan sponsor bankruptcies, issues specific to defined contribution and defined benefit plans that arise in bankruptcies, the powers and responsibilities of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) in corporate bankruptcies, PBGC bankruptcy claims, treatment of nonqualified pension claims in bankruptcy, and bankruptcy avoidance actions, including fraudulent transfer actions and defenses relating to retirement plan contributions.