Before last year, discussion of excessive fees incurred by participants of 401(k) plans was like Russia’s recent claims to the North Pole: wading into relatively uncharted legal territory.

However, 401(k) plans are quickly becoming the dominant means of saving for retirement. It should come as no surprise, then, that both Congress and the courts have begun to focus on the issue of fees charged by trustees, investment advisers and others who provide services to such plans.