News & Events
News & Events
The High Court has handed down its judgment in British Broadcasting Association v (1) BBC Pension Trust Limited (2) Christina Burns in which Andrew Spink KC and Saul Margo, instructed by Helena Berman at Stephenson Harwood acted on behalf of the successful Representative Beneficiary. This landmark decision is now only the second case (after Lloyds Bank Pension Trust Corporation v Lloyds Bank plc [1996] PLR 263) in which a domestic court has found that a fetter on a pension scheme’s amendment power protects future service benefits. The case was brought because the BBC wished to limit the ongoing costs of funding the BBC Pension Scheme and needed to understand the scope of the fetter on the Scheme’s amendment power. The…
News 28 Jul, 2023
The Court of Appeal has published its judgment in (1) Lawrence Ewan McGaughey (2) Neil Martin Davies (Claimants/Appellants) -v- Universities Superannuation Scheme Ltd (First Defendant/First Respondent), the landmark company multiple derivative case which raised the question of directors’ duties in relation to divestment in fossil fuels for the first time. In a significant judgment (found here) handed down on Friday 21 July 2023 Asplin LJ, with whom the Rt Hon. Sir Julian Flaux, Chancellor of the High Court, and Snowden LJ agreed, dismissed the appeal on all grounds. Two members of a pension scheme had sought permission to bring a claim against the current and former directors of one of the UK’s largest pension schemes by assets in the form…
News 25 Jul, 2023
Join the Association of Pension Lawyers at Outer Temple Chambers, with Victoria Brown and Patrick Tomison for a talk on Pensions Ombudsman Update. You are invited to join APL, Victoria Brown and Patrick Tomison of Outer Temple Chambers on Tuesday, 11th July 2023. This talk will reflect a summary of recent decisions of the Pensions Ombudsman and provide analysis which will be of relevance to disputes and non-disputes pensions practitioners. Agenda Venue: Outer Temple Chambers, 222 Strand, London, WC2R 1BADate: Tuesday, 11th July 20235:45pm – Registration6:00pm – Pensions Ombudsman Update7:00pm – Drinks and pizza Book your place This will be a hybrid event. To book your place in-person (£20 registration fee) or to join virtually (free), please email George Bennett on mailto:georgebennett@outertemple.com.…
Events 4 Jul, 2023
Andrew Short KC, David E Grant KC, Philip Stear and Helen Pugh were in Court of Appeal this week for the long running pensions and company law dispute (1) Dr Ewan McGaughey (2) Dr Neil Davies -v- Universities Superannuation Scheme Ltd. David E Grant and Philip Stear acted on behalf of the Appellants, instructed by Leigh Day, in the Court of Appeal in (1) Dr Ewan McGaughey (2) Dr Neil Davies -v- Universities Superannuation Scheme Ltd. Andrew Short KC and Helen Pugh acted on behalf of the Respondent, instructed by CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP. The claim brought by members of a pension scheme is as a common law derivative action. This ground-breaking case has raised novel issues with…
News 15 Jun, 2023
Bianca Venkata has recently been published in Lexis Nexis® PSL. Her article provides a short overview of the proposed amendments of Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) to the National Health Service Pension Scheme Regulations 1995 (1995 Regs). On the 5th December 2022, DHSC launched a consultation regarding proposed amendments to the 1995 regulations. The background to the consultation was a desire to make it more attractive for NHS employees to work for longer and thereby reduce NHS waiting times and retain the skills and knowledge of experienced NHS employees. The key reform proposals include allowing pensionable re-employment for retired members of the 1995 Scheme, allowing partial retirement for members who wish to continue working while reducing their hours and drawing…
External Publications 22 May, 2023
We are delighted to announce that Andrew Short KC has been shortlisted for ‘Barrister of the Year’ at The Lawyer Awards 2023. The Lawyer Awards have been the ultimate stage for legal mastery in the UK, honouring top-notch lawyers and powerhouse firms across diverse areas. Andrew Short KC’s practice centres on pensions, employment, and general commercial work. He has acted in many of the leading employment cases relating to discrimination in pay and pensions, including Abdulla v Birmingham City Council, Brierley v Asda, McCloud v Lord Chancellor, and Sargeant v LFEPA. His recent notable pensions cases have included the landmark case of Lloyds Banking Group Pension Trustees Ltd v Lloyds Bank [2030] EWHC 3135 (Ch), Britvic PLC v Britvic Pensions Ltd & Mohun [2021] EWCA Civ 867 and…
News 5 May, 2023
Join Outer Temple Chambers at the Marriott Delta Hotel, Bristol for an afternoon of pensions law talks at the first stop of this conference series around the country. You are invited to join Outer Temple Chambers in Bristol for the first stop of our Pensions Law Conference 2023 series. Topics will include: an actuary’s role in Section 67 certification, age discrimination and the EU Withdrawal Act 2018, the presumption of regularity, and notable non-pensions cases for pensions lawyers. The event will be rounded off with a panel discussion comprised of Outer Temple’s silks. Agenda 1.30pm – Registration (tea and coffee on arrival)2pm – Consultation with the scheme actuary and Section 67 Certification. Wherehas Mitchells & Butler left Us?Lydia Seymour &…
Events 4 Apr, 2023
Andrew Short KC and Bianca Venkata, acting for the claimants, and Naomi Ling, acting for the Trustee, have appeared in an important case relating to age discrimination in pension schemes. Mrs Justice Eady, President, sitting in the EAT, found that claimants bringing claims of age discrimination against a private sector body after IP Completion date (31 December 2020) could not rely on general principles of EU law to disapply a provision [in the Equality Act (Age Exemptions for Pension Schemes) Regulations 2010] excluding all claims for age discrimination relating to pensionable service before 1 December 2006. The Employment Tribunal had disapplied this provision relying on the case of Innospec v Walker [2017] UKSC 47. The decision of the Employment Tribunal…
News 1 Nov, 2022
Outer Temple’s Nicolas Stallworthy KC and Richard Hitchcock KC will be speaking at White Paper’s upcoming Pensions Law Conference named ‘Pensions Law: Shaping New Developments into Solution-Focused Answers for your Clients’. This is being held on Tuesday 4th October 2022. White Paper are an organisation who provide advanced-level legal and business conferences. They are soon holding a conference entitled ‘Pensions Law: Shaping New Developments into Solution-Focused Answers for your Clients’ that aims to provide answers to the biggest legal matters facing the pensions industry. Nicolas Stallworthy KC is due to be answering the question ‘What are the practical and legal implications of the new notifiable events triggers and “declarations of intent”, and which corporate activities will likely be caught?’ Richard…
News 30 Sep, 2022
Bianca Venkata has recently been published in Lexis Nexis® PSL. Her article looks at The Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Act 2022 and is available now online. Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Act 2022 (PSPJOA 2022) was given Royal Assent on 10 March 2022. Following a detailed report on the need to reform public sector pensions, the ruling in the McCloud and Sargeant case, a cost control valuation, and a review conducted by the Senior Salaries Review Body, the government introduced the PSPJOA 2022. The key measures, including the removal of discriminatory transitional provisions and of the final salary link, alongside the introduction of the cost control mechanism have meant public sector pension schemes are arguably fairer. In…
External Publications 13 Jun, 2022
Andrew Short QC, David E. Grant QC, Helen Pugh and Gus Baker, of Outer Temple’s Pensions and Commercial team, have been instructed in a landmark multiple derivative and ESG case. In this case two members of one of the largest pension schemes in the UK made a novel attempt to obtain the court’s permission to bring a derivative claim against the directors of the corporate trustee of the pension scheme. In a detailed judgment dismissing the application, Mr Justice Leech provides welcome clarification on the test to be applied to multiple derivative actions. Such actions continue to be governed by the Foss v Harbottle common law test in contrast to single derivative actions which are now governed by the Companies Act 2006. Further, in one…
News 25 May, 2022
Lydia Seymour has been asked to write an Opinion for the LGPS Scheme Advisory Board on the issue of whether local authorities need to offer a sharia-compliant alternative to the Local Government Pension Scheme. A number of LGPS member authorities had observed that some employees were opting out of the LGPS on the basis of their religious belief, particularly people of the Muslim faith who were concerned that LGPS funds/investments were not Sharia-compliant. At present there is no alternative pension provision from these employers other than the LGPS. The board therefore commissioned a report and asked Lydia to advise on the risk of a successful claim for discrimination or human rights challenge from an employee complaining of a failure by…
Legal Blogs 3 May, 2022
