Areas of Service | Key Contacts

The Pensions Department undertakes all aspects of pensions legal advisory work dealing with compliance and regulatory issues, changes to pension benefits, pension creditor work including corporate recovery and Pension Protection Fund implications and offers the facility of acting as an independent pension scheme trustee through a separate company Entrust Pension Recovery Limited.

 

Members of the Department are specialists in advising on the Pension Regulator's moral hazard powers such as Contribution Notices and Financial Support Direction issues and in providing innovative solutions to pension deficit aspects of corporate transactions which have protected our corporate and institutional clients from significant exposure.

 

The Department is experienced in contentious aspects of pensions work including Pensions Ombudsman applications, appeals and the enforcement of determinations as well as high profile High Court applications acting for trustees, employers and representative beneficiaries. Key cases have included Bestwood plc, Maxwell Saga, Melton Medes, Overseas Pensioners v HM Government and several cases against pensions' consultants.

 

Cross Border applications and implications are common today and we have considerable experience of multinational arrangements including access to a network of experienced pension practitioners worldwide.

 

Entrust Pension Recovery Limited instructs most of the leading firms of consultants, accountants, actuaries, administrators and insurance companies on its extensive portfolio of trusteeships. The Department's clients, which include global corporations, pension fund trustees, public authorities and financial institutions, benefit from our commitment to technical expertise allied to an intelligent, practical and commercial approach.

 

Areas of Specialism/Expertise

 

Compliance and Regulatory

• Assessment Periods
• Clearance Applications
• Contribution Notices
• Financial Support Directions
• Member Nominated Trustee
• Pension Protection Fund
• Scheme Specific Funding Negotiation
• Simplification Change
• Trustee Governance
• Trustee Knowledge and Understanding

Non Contentious

• Deed and Rule drafting
• Independent Trusteeship - Entrust Pension Recovery Limited
• Investment Management Agreements, Custodianship Agreements and other contracts with trustee service providers
• Life Assurance/Death Benefit Advice
• Member Communications
• Pension Creditor Advice
• Product Development Advice
• Project Management for Changes to Pension Arrangements
• Public Sector Pension Scheme Advice
• Winding Up

Contentious

• Enforcement of Pension Regulator powers
• Enforcing pension lien rules
• Internal Dispute Resolution Procedure
• Pensions Ombudsman applications, enforcement of determinations and appeals
• Rectification of pension scheme documentation
• Representative Beneficiary work

Transactions

• High net worth corporate pension solutions
• IT, FM and other outsourcing
• Mergers and Acquisitions (including Beckmann/Martin indemnity issues)
• Scheme Mergers
• PPP/PFI outsourcing
• Private equity and acquisition finance

Patrick Kennedy
Head of Pensions
Tel: 0161 618 4716