 of such plan shall not constitute a qualified trust under this section unless 
(i) in the case of a vested participant who does not die before the annuity starting date, the accrued benefit payable to such participant is provided in the form of a qualified joint and survivor annuity, ["QJSA"][8] and (ii) in the case of a vested participant who dies before the annuity starting date and who has a surviving spouse, a qualified preretirement survivor annuity is provided to the surviving spouse of such participant.
26 U.S.C. § 401(a)(11).
The advent of mandatory spousal annuities or QPSAs derive from and were instituted as part of an overall scheme under the Retirement Equity Act of 1984, ("REA") of 1984, P.L. 98-397 which was signed into law on August 24th of that year. Among other things, it amended various portions of ERISA. In particular, the REA mandated automatic payment of survivor benefits, or a QPSA, to the surviving spouse of a participant vested in a pension plan prior to retirement and/or death. Specifically, ERISA as amended by the REA, provides: "in the case of a vested participant who dies before the annuity starting date and who has a surviving spouse, a qualified preretirement survivor annuity shall be provided to the surviving spouse of such participant."[9] 29 U.S.C. § 1055(a)(2); 26 U.S.C. §§ 401(a) and 417. According to Lefkowitz, because the REA's effective date succeeded the termination of the Arcadia and Bay Novelty Plans, no QPSA provision can be read into these Plans now.
Lefkowitz further maintains that the Plans, as drafted and as in existence until their respective terminations, always provided: "`Beneficiary' shall mean: (a) the last person ... designated as Beneficiary by the Participant...." Lefkowitz Memo., Exh. 4, Art. I, ¶ 1.6. There is no dispute that Mr. Marsh designated Lefkowitz the last beneficiary within the meaning of the Plans.[10] However, after the REA's effective date, a QPSA was automatically payable on the first day of the subsequent new plan year unless the part