Rupert Reed

Pensions CV

As a pupil, Rupert received a thorough grounding in Pensions Law from his former supervisors, Christopher Nugee QC and Michael Furness QC.  In practice, Rupert is increasingly called upon to apply his litigation experience in commercial and professional liability cases arising in a pensions context. 

Similarly, he acts in fact-heavy pensions cases, such as those relating to entitlements to incapacity pensions, and in cases which involve both pensions and company law, for example in advising on the liability of companies to make payments to their pension schemes under section 75 of the Pensions Act 1995.  

Recent/notable cases include:

• With Michael Tennet QC, acting for Prudential Assurance Company Ltd in successfully obtaining declarations by Newey J approving the company's decision to aim to limit discretionary inflationary increases to pensions in payment to LPI 2.5% in the face of arguments by certain classes of members of the Scheme that the decision was in breach of the company's implied duty of good faith or that the company was estopped from acting on the decision by statements made or a general understanding that increases would be paid at RPI, alternatively that the trustee's failure to award automatically increasing pensions could be reviewed under the former rule in Hastings-Bass (In re Prudential Staff Pensions Scheme[2011] EWHC 960 (Ch); [2011] PLR 239).
  
  
• Acting for a Northern firm of surveyors in pursuing a professional negligence claim against its former solicitors in respect of their failure to transfer various properties held in SIPPs into an EPUT, and to effect the issue or transfer of the relevant units in time for the Claimants to acquire further properties to be held in the EPUT before A-day in 2006 (Lamont Commercial Ltd v. Hall Smith Whittingham LLP [2011]).
  
  
• With Michael Tennet QC, successfully defending claims of negligence made against a leading firm of solicitors in respect of claims that it had negligently failed, in carrying out a review of statutory requirements for scheme trustees, to advise them that fluctuating emoluments had been included within ‘pensionable salary' (Kentucky Fried Chicken (GB) Ltd & Ors v. Mercer Ltd & Ors [2009]).
  
  
• With Michael Furness QC, advising a major international airline as to whether on a review of its pension scheme documentation fluctuating emoluments were properly included within the definition of ‘pensionable salary' and as to claims against the scheme's former pension consultants (Trustees of the Singapore Airlines Pension & Life Assurance Scheme & Anor v. BC Ltd) [2009]).
  
  
• Successfully responding before Lewison J to the claimant's appeal from an Ombudsman's determination that the claimant was not entitled to early receipt of his deferred benefits under the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations from the date of onset of his incapacity (substantially restricting the scope of the principle in Spreadborough v. PO (2004) OPLR 273) (Hamilton v. Monmouthshire CC [2008] EWHC 3101; [2008] All ER (D) 200).
  
  
• Acting for KPMG as administrators of the Berkeley Berry Birch financial services group in defending a claim by proof of debt lodged by the PPF in respect of an alleged debt under Section 75 of the Pensions Act 1995 (In re Berry Birch and Noble Insurance Brokers Ltd (in administration) [2008]).
  
  
• Acting successfully for a divorced wife pursuing her former husband to reconstitute their SSAP to the extent of breaches of trust by the husband in unauthorised self-investments and loans and taken rents and profits from a property purchased with the fund (Clarke v. Clarke [2008]).
  
  
• Successfully obtaining the agreement of Vauxhall and the trustees of its pension scheme to pay a full incapacity pension to a former plant manager suffering from fibromyalgia from the date of her early retirement (Challinor v. Vauxhall Power Train Ltd & the Trustees of the Vauxhall Motors Limited Pension Plan [2008]).
  
  
• Acting the former CEO of a substantial UK paper company in seeking a declaration of his entitlement to an augmentation of his pension entitlements promised to him by the director of his employer's global holding company [2007].
  
  
• With David Lowe QC, persuading Neuberger J that the trustee was entitled to exercise certain powers under the scheme notwithstanding the absence of a principal employer (Capital Cranfield Trust Corp Ltd v. Sagar [2002] All ER (D) 190 (Oct)).