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Case law - Industrial Acoustics Company Limited v Crowhurst & others

This High Court decision concerned a scheme which had been amended to equalise normal retirement dates between men and women, but unfortunately a later consolidation of the scheme trust deed and rules mistakenly contained wording which unravelled those amendments.

This meant that the scheme liabilities were far higher than intended. The issue came to light when the company was about to be sold, and needed to be dealt with very quickly in that context. An application to the High Court for rectification of the consolidated trust deed and rules by summary judgment was successful.

This case highlights that rectification by summary judgment is becoming increasingly accepted. However, strong evidence of the intentions of the various parties at the time of the mistake will always be needed.