Q&As

View Pensions by content type:

News

Practice notes

Precedents

Q&As

Latest Pensions News

Pension introducer companies avoid winding up orders after steelworkers advice scandal

The following Pensions news provides comprehensive and up to date legal information on Pension introducer companies avoid winding up orders after steelworkers advice scandal

Britvic fights for flexibility to determine pension increase rate in Court of Appeal

The following Pensions news provides comprehensive and up to date legal information on Britvic fights for flexibility to determine pension increase rate in Court of Appeal

Pensions weekly highlights—13 May 2021

The following Pensions news provides comprehensive and up to date legal information on Pensions weekly highlights—13 May 2021

City urges government to stop scams with Online Safety Bill

The following Corporate Crime news provides comprehensive and up to date legal information on City urges government to stop scams with Online Safety Bill

Featured Pensions content

The employment contract—sample pensions clauses

The following pension clauses set out the pensions information to be included in an employment contract, depending on the type of...

Anti-franking

The conceptIt used to be the case that contracted-out salary-related (COSR) schemes could revalue a deferred member's guaranteed minimum pension (GMP)...

Month definition

Month means a calendar month; Close This is a suggested definition for the term 'month', which...

Deed of substitution

Date: [insert date](1)[Name of Former Principal Employer](2)[Names of Trustees](3)[Name of the New Principal Employer]Deed of Substitution of...

Practice notes

Calculating pension loss in employment tribunal claims

Pension loss will generally only arise in cases where an individual has lost their job and the pension provision that went with that job. An...

Produced in partnership with Keith Bryant QC of Outer Temple Chambers. 12th Jan

Practice notes

Personal pension schemes—disclosure requirements before 6 April 2014 [Archived]

THIS PRACTICE NOTE APPLIES TO PERSONAL PENSION SCHEMES This Practice Note looks at the disclosure requirements that were applicable to trustees (or...

9th Nov

Practice notes

How to deal with a section 75 debt—an introduction

THIS PRACTICE NOTE APPLIES IN RELATION TO DEFINED BENEFIT OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEMESThis Practice Note looks at the alternative methods available to...

9th Nov

Precedents

Execution clause—company—deed

Option 1—deed executed by a company under its common seal (model articles, where the authorised signatory is an...

9th Nov

In-house

Practice notes

How to deal with Beckmann liabilities on a business sale

THIS PRACTICE NOTE APPLIES IN RELATION TO OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEMESThis Practice Note applies to business sales which are subject to the Transfer...

Produced in partnership with Ginevra Gatrell of gunnercooke LLP 12th Jan

Practice notes

Beddoe applications

When trustees are engaged in trust litigation, issues often arise as to how their litigation costs are to be funded. A Beddoe application is the best...

Produced in partnership with Kate Davenport QC of Outer Temple Chambers and Adele Isaacs of Bankside Chambers 12th Jan

Practice notes

Bridging pensions

Bridging pensions—backgroundBridging pensions are a form of pension provided by some (but not all) defined benefit occupational pension schemes in...

Produced in partnership with Wyn Derbyshire of gunnercooke LLP 12th Jan

Practice notes

Introduction to retained EU law

This Practice Note provides an introduction to retained EU law, which is an entirely new legal concept introduced to UK domestic law in preparation...

9th Nov

Brexit

Practice notes

Pension bulk transfers—beginners’ guide

This guide is primarily aimed at trainees, newly qualified lawyers and other persons who are new to or unfamiliar with pensions law.THIS PRACTICE NOTE...

Produced in partnership with Wyn Derbyshire of gunnercooke LLP 12th Jan

Practice notes

The Electricity Supply Pension Scheme

The Electricity Supply Pension Scheme (‘ESPS’) is a trust-based scheme established by the Electricity Council by a resolution dated 20 January 1983 as...

Produced in partnership with Gary Delderfield of Eversheds Sutherland 12th Jan

Practice notes

Pension attachment orders

The power to make pension attachment orders (previously referred to as earmarking orders) arises from the insertion of sections 25B–25D of the...

Produced in partnership with Rebecca Dziobon of Penningtons Manches Cooper 12th Jan

Practice notes

What does ‘contracting-out’ mean for pension lawyers?

Interaction with the additional State pensionBefore 6 April 2016, there were two levels of State pension provision:•the basic State pension—this was a...

9th Nov

Practice notes

The pre A-day pensions tax regime

The pensions tax regime under the Finance Act 2004 came into effect on 6 April 2006, otherwise known as A-day. The pre A-day regime may still be of...

Produced in partnership with Mark Smith, Georgina Wardrop and Angela Sharma of Taylor Wessing LLP 12th Jan

Practice notes

Auto-enrolment—the transitional period for DB and hybrid schemes [Archived]

ARCHIVED. This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained.As well as the option to postpone auto-enrolment, employers which operate defined...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Retirement schemes for executives—UURBS, FURBS and EFRBS

Just as executives tend to enjoy better salary packages than the ordinary workforce, so is it often the case that they receive better pension...

Produced in partnership with Wyn Derbyshire of gunnercooke LLP 12th Jan

Practice notes

Retirement Annuity Contracts (RAC)—older types of personal pension schemes

Personal pension schemes—central role in private pensions sectorPersonal pension schemes, in their various forms, play a central and important role in...

Produced in partnership with Wyn Derbyshire of gunnercooke LLP 12th Jan

Most recent Q&As content

Q&As

What is the pensions impact of the Dormant Assets Scheme?

What is the pensions impact of the Dormant Assets Scheme?What is the Dormant Assets Scheme?The Dormant Assets Scheme (the Scheme) is a scheme led by...

14th May

Q&As

Is relief from stamp duty land tax available to beneficiaries of a private pension scheme who buy a property from their own pension scheme?

Is relief from stamp duty land tax available to beneficiaries of a private pension scheme who buy a property from their own pension scheme?There is no...

13th May

Q&As

Can a scheme member request that the trustees divest from fossil fuel investments?

Can a scheme member request that the trustees divest from fossil fuel investments?Since 1 October 2019, trustees of occupational pension schemes are...

12th May

Q&As

What is the impact of Brexit on international transfers of personal data?

What is the impact of Brexit on international transfers of personal data?This Q&A looks at the impact of Brexit on cross-border transfers of personal...

12th May

Brexit

Q&As

What are the consequences for pension scheme trustees if pensions are paid to members on the ‘Consolidated List of Financial Sanctions Targets’ issued by the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation? What obligations do pensions trustees have to carry out due diligence to safeguard against pensions being paid to such individuals?

What are the consequences for pension scheme trustees if pensions are paid to members on the ‘Consolidated List of Financial Sanctions Targets’ issued...

11th May

Q&As

Are there regulations which extend the Pensions Regulator (Notifiable Events) Regulations 2005, SI 2005/900 to former employers?

The purpose of the Pensions Regulator (Notifiable Events) Regulations 2005 (Notifiable Events Regulations), SI 2005/900, is to give the Pensions...

Produced in partnership with Max Ballad of Arc Pensions Law LLP 27th Apr

Q&As

What is retained EU law?

Retained EU law is a legal concept describing EU-derived legislation, rights and principles the UK plans to preserve in UK law after Brexit. It is a...

Produced in partnership with Mathias Cheung of Atkin Chambers 15th Apr

Brexit

Q&As

Can an attorney under a registered lasting powers of attorney for property and financial affairs ask trustees of the donor's Self-Invested Personal Pension to pay money out?

You have asked: Can an attorney under a registered lasting powers of attorney for property and financial affairs ask trustees of the donor's...

14th Apr

Q&As

My company needs to enter into a document as a deed but everyone is working from home. Is it possible to execute a deed by virtual means?

Many businesses are closing their offices or recommending their staff work from home in an attempt to slow the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). This...

8th Apr

COVID-19

Q&As

What is the legal interpretation applicable to a pension provider prefunding employer pension contributions, where the provider temporarily uses its money to make investments on behalf of the scheme trustee in anticipation of the employer contribution? Might this be: 1 Borrowing by the scheme trustees—the provider effectively makes a short term loan to the trustees, but note the borrowing limits in the Finance Act 2004; 2 Purchase of a chose in action—the provider conditionally purchases from the trustees the right to receive the employer contribution; or 3 Third party contribution—the provider is making a third party contribution, likely to give rise to unauthorised payments?

It seems that the transaction could be construed as a conditional purchase agreement.The purchase of assets for the pension scheme by the provider is...

Produced in partnership with Max Ballad of Arc Pensions Law LLP 29th Mar

Q&As

In a settlement agreement, if an employee elects to divert a £20,000 payment in lieu of notice payment into a pension scheme, how does this affect the PENP calculation?

Post-employment notice pay (PENP) calculationThe first step when considering the taxation of termination payments, including payments in lieu of...

22nd Mar

Q&As

A party to financial remedy proceedings has failed to provide pension information in accordance with a direction of the court because the pension provider has refused to provide it. Can the other party to the proceedings seek a penal notice and if so, on what basis? How would such an application be opposed?

Where information required within financial remedy proceedings has previously been subject to a direction or order and has not been provided, it is...

23rd Feb

Q&As

If an estate is insolvent can a nominated pension that is outside of the estate be clawed back in as an asset ?

We refer you to the following Commentary: Pensions: Tolley's Administration of Estates [G6.23].This extract explains that section 11 of the Welfare...

23rd Feb

Q&As

For the purposes of complying with Article 28 of the General Data Protection Regulation, is a pension scheme auditor classed as a 'processor' or 'controller'?

The definitions of 'controller' and 'processor' under Regulation (EU) 2016/679, the General Data Protection Regulation (the GDPR) are set out in...

23rd Feb

Q&As

An employee pays into a stakeholder pension and their employer operates a National Employment Savings Trust scheme for other employees and ensures both it and the employees pay in the minimum contribution. However, the employer does not pay any employer contributions into a stakeholder pension. Is the employer required to do so?

...

22nd Feb

Q&As

Can you obtain a third party debt order against a pension?

Note: this Q&A assumes that the debtor is a member of a personal pension scheme under which they have the right to elect to take up to 25% of their...

22nd Feb

Q&As

The wife of a deceased member has requested information regarding the deceased member's pension from the trustees of a pension scheme in order to support a medical negligence claim, but the wife is neither a current or prospective beneficiary under the scheme. In these circumstances: (i) if the scheme trustees do not disclose the information and the wife complained to the Pensions Ombudsman, would the complaint fall within the remit of the Ombudsman, and (ii) if the complaint does fall within the Pensions Ombudsman’s remit and the complaint is successful, what award could the Ombudsman make?

It is stated that the wife of the deceased member is neither a current or prospective beneficiary under the pension scheme. However, it is not...

17th Feb

Q&As

Can an employer implement a pension scheme incentive exercise for its workforce?

Yes, provided they (and the trustees) are satisfied that any incentive exercise proposal complies with applicable legal requirements, in particular...

17th Feb

Q&As

Do the pension consultation regulations apply on a share or business sale?

A corporate transaction such as a share sale or a business sale may involve employees ceasing to be active members of a scheme in the seller's group...

15th Feb

Q&As