News

Case law - IBM loses High Court pensions case

Thursday, November 29, 2012

IBM will have to rectify the trust deeds and rules for its UK defined benefit scheme to allow active members to retire from age 60 without the organisation’s consent or reduction in their pension, following a High Court judgement.

The case was brought before the courts by the pension scheme’s trustee, IBM UK Pensions Trust, which argued that, when the scheme was established in 1983, it was with the intention that active members would be able to retire between ages 60 and 63 without IBM’s consent or a reduction in their pension, but that a mistake in the original deeds established that consent was required.

The High Court ruled that the evidence showed that the intention was there and that the deeds must now be rectified. IBM has stated that it will cost the organisation £100 million to comply with the ruling.

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Head of Team - Specialist Solicitors in Further and Higher Education

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