Sacker & Partners solicitors specialising in pensions law

Sackers Extra News is an information newsletter service presenting significant legal developments relating to pensions. The newsletter addresses topics with universal appeal on a regular basis, to help keep you abreast of the key issues.

If you would like to receive a copy of the newsletters shown below please e-mail Marketing with your contact details. A company name is required.

Recent newsletters are summarised below.

April 2008	Overpayments - a taxing problem?
	In recent years, another layer of complexity has been added to the already complicated (and sometimes emotionally fraught) area of mistaken overpayments by pension schemes. The culprit is the Finance Act 2004 and its treatment of overpayments as unauthorised payments. Here we recap the key historical considerations relating to overpayments, before looking at the latest developments under the Finance Bill 2008.
February 2008	Lindorfer - Are sex-based actuarial factors an endangered species?
	In the shifting sands of pensions regulation, the bedrock for pensions professionals is legal certainty. Since the 1993 case of Neath v Hugh Steeper, pension schemes have not questioned their ability to calculate a cash equivalent transfer value (CETV) using sex-based actuarial factors. But the recent European Court of Justice (ECJ) case of Lindorfer has unearthed new doubts in this area.
November 2007	Trustee Conflicts - an everyday story of superheroes?
	Acting as a trustee can no doubt sometimes seem like a herculean task. Combining such a role with being a Finance Director (FD) of the sponsoring employer needs the powers of a superhero ("Superannuation Man"?!). Just how can such potentially demanding, and diverse, roles be managed in times of conflict?
October 2007	Companies Act 2006 - What lies beneath?
	The Companies Act 2006 (the "Act") is quite literally the largest Act ever to hit our statute books. For occupational pension schemes with corporate trustees the Act's potential impact on the protection of directors from liability has already grabbed the limelight. But there are other aspects of the Act with which corporate trustees need to be familiar. Here we bring some of the key points to the surface.
September 2007	Double Act - Finance Act 2007 and Pensions Act 2007
	The stream of pensions legislation is never ending. Whilst we are still learning to walk in the twin worlds of the Pensions Act 2004 (PA04) and Finance Act 2004 (FA04), more changes are on the cards. We now have a new double act - the Finance Act 2007 (FA07) and the Pensions Act 2007 (PA07). Here we look at some of the upcoming changes.
July 2007	The ECJ, VAT and investment trusts
	The European Court of Justice (ECJ) recently ruled on the VAT treatment of management services to UK investment trust companies (ITCs). In this Newsletter, we consider the essential parts of the case and its potential impact on occupational pension schemes.
June 2007	TPR - its toolkit, the codes, its guidance
	One of the Pensions Regulator's (TPR) main objectives is to promote and improve understanding of "the good administration of work-based pension schemes". Since its inception over two years ago, TPR has become an increasingly prolific writer on a wide variety of pensions issues. But with so much for trustees (and employers) to absorb, here we recap on the range of information now available from TPR.
May 2007	Public sector focus: Freedom of Information Act
	Two recent decision notices from the Information Commissioner have focused local authorities minds on the FOIA implications of investing in private equity.
April 2007	Finance Act changes to Children's Trusts
	The Finance Act 2006 (FA 2006) sounded the death knell for “accumulation and maintenance” (A&M) trusts. In this Newsletter we look at the ramifications for occupational pension schemes resulting from their demise.
February 2007	PPF entry and apportioning DB liabilities
	Will the apportionment of liability between participating employers in a defined benefit (DB) occupational pension scheme cut off possible future access to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF)? This is the question posed in the recent case of L & Others v M Ltd (L v M). The judgment sheds light on the rarely litigated (but highly complex) section 75 of the Pensions Act 1995 and the equally convoluted regulations governing entry to the PPF.
January 2007	Companies Act 2006
	The Companies Act 2006 (the “Act”) received Royal Assent on 8 November 2006 but, for the most part, will not come into force until October 2008. This newsletter looks at the key provisions for pension schemes and when they are likely to be implemented.

News archive

Visit our archive to find past newsletters.

2006 / 2005 / 2004