A settlor is a person who, in administering employee benefit programs, acts with broad discretionary authority. In contrast, a fiduciary must act strictly in accordance with the provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

Recognizing that settlor and fiduciary acts, while legally different, are nevertheless both closely related and functionally similar, a handful of insurers have responded to the fact that fiduciary liability policies do not cover the acts of settlors by offering endorsements to their policy forms that affirmatively cover settlor acts.