Outer Temple barristers included in The Lawyer’s ‘Top 10 Appeals of 2023’

The Lawyer has revealed its ‘Top 10 Appeals of 2023’ and we are delighted that four Outer Temple members have been included for their involvement in McGaugey & Anr v Universities Superannuation Scheme Limited & Ors.

There are plenty of lawsuits heading to the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court this year and The Lawyer has picked its Top 10 to watch. Barclays Bank, Central Bank of Venezuela, Deliveroo, Arron Banks and United Utilities Water are just some notable examples, alongside the long running and hard fought battle between McGaugey & Anr v Universities Superannuation Scheme Limited & Ors.

This rematch between two university academics and the directors of the UK’s largest private pension scheme heads to the Court of Appeal in June for two days with legal teams including David E Grant KC and Gus Baker for the appellant and Andrew Short KC and Helen Pugh for the respondent.

McGaugey & Anr v Universities Superannuation Scheme Limited & Ors

The dispute involves Dr Ewan McGaughey, a reader in law at King’s College London, and Neil Davies, a professor of medical ethics at UCL. The pair has accused the directors of the Universities Superannuation Scheme Limited, the corporate trustees of the academics’ pension, of breaching their statutory and fiduciary duties.

Among the allegations is that the directors have failed to create a credible plan for disinvestment from fossil fuels, which will continue to prejudice the pension’s scheme success.

Last year, the High Court recognised that beneficiaries of a pension corporate are entitled to bring breach of duty proceedings, but denied permission to continue the claim under common law principles. Mr Justice Leech was unconvinced that the pension scheme had suffered any immediate financial loss because of the directors’ failure to adopt an adequate plan for long-term divestment – an investment decision that fell within their discretion. Leech J was also unpersuaded that the directors deliberately or dishonesty breached their duties.

McGaughey and Davies’ crowdfunded case is expected to readdress the classic corporate law precedent in Foss v Harbottle, plus the directors’ duties contained in the Companies Act 2006.

Legal line-up

For appellants, Lawrence Ewan McGaughey and Neil Martin Davies
Outer Temple Chambers’ David E Grant KC and Gus Baker, not instructed by anyone

For respondents, Universities Superannuation Scheme
Outer Temple Chambers’ Andrew Short KC and Helen Pugh, instructed by CMS partners Dan Tench and Mark Atkinson, and senior associate Nadia Latti.

The full list of ‘Top 10 Appeals of 2023’ is available to subscribers of The Lawyer at: https://www.thelawyer.com/revealed-the-top-10-appeals-of-2023/

This list was compiled by Maria Ward-Brennan, Annabel Tinson & Christian Smith of The Lawyer. The above case commentary was first published in The Lawyer on 6 February 2023.

Find out more

Andrew Short KC‘s practice centres on pensions, employment, and commercial work. His strategic advice and his advocacy is highly sought after by his clients and he brings years of experience as a trial lawyer in hostile and contentious claims to bear whenever necessary. Andrew’s work encompasses both private and public sector schemes and includes issues of construction, funding issues, preservation and revaluation, Beckmann claims and various regulatory issues including contribution notices and financial support directions. He has been involved in some of the most significant equalisation cases of recent years including the landmark case of Lloyds Banking Group Pension Trustee v Lloyds Bank. Andrew also has experience of large financial services and other commercial disputes.

David E Grant KC is a chancery and commercial practitioner with specialist expertise in pensions, trusts and professional negligence. He has extensive advocacy experience in courts and tribunals up to the European Court of Justice. He has also attended numerous mediations and round table meetings in a wide variety of cases. David has been involved in some of the most high-profile pensions cases in recent years including appearing before the Grand Chamber of the ECJ in Safeway Ltd v Newton & Anor [2020] Pens.L.R. 4 as to whether a scheme can be retrospectively levelled down.

Gus Baker’s practice focuses on employment, pensions and commercial litigation, in addition to professional negligence claims in relation to these areas. He has been instructed, and assisted in, numerous cases relating to pensions law. He has a particular interest in professional negligence claims and the intersection between employment and pensions law.

Helen Pugh is regularly instructed in all aspects of company and contentious insolvency matters. She has significant experience of shareholder disputes across a range of sectors and industries. Helen is regularly instructed in unfair prejudice matters for minority shareholders or on cross-petitions. She has been instructed on a number of derivative action matters, including McGaughey v USSL which is thought to be the first reported case of an attempt to bring an ESG derivative action.

News 16 Feb, 2023