The Gazette 1991

GAZETTE

JU LY/AUGUST

1991

publishing books on areas of law which are expanding all the time. The last two years have seen a tremendous growth in pension litigation in the United Kingdom and the publishing of the Update October 1990 reflects this. The Up- date October 1990 is a much fuller volume than its predecessor. The Update October 1990 now includes references in the text to many important decisions as such as Icarus Limited -v- Driscoll and the European Court's decision in Barber -v- Guardian Royal Exchange. The book is divided into five parts sub-divided into sections. Part I deals with the creation of a pension scheme, Revenue approval and the consequences of loss of such approval. Naturally, as this is a UK publication, this Part will not be of particular relevance to Irish pension lawyers but I found the section dealing with the consequences of loss of Revenue approval of interest as it is something that one is often asked by clients. I found the section on interim trust deeds somewhat sketchy. The October 1989 edition dealt with announcement letters and booklets in a very basic manner. However, the Update October 1990 has now an ex- tended section w i th a good paragraph on Estoppel on the basis of the Booklet. Part II deals with trustees and is divided into eight sections covering every aspect of trusteeship from appointment and removal of trustees, their duties, disclosure of information, to protection of trustees. All lawyers, be they pension lawyers, barrieteFá and solicitors with a chancery practice or general practioners, will find this part most useful and extremely valuable as it brings together all of the important areas which lawyers have to deal with and advise on with regard to pension schemes and trusteeship. In spite of the statutory requirements with regard to trustees, as detailed in the Pensions Act 1990, the common law principles wi th regard to trusteeship still apply. Naturally again this part has to be read bearing in mind the relevant Irish legislation. I found Section 4 (Duties of Trustees) to be most helpful as it was comprehensive in the areas covered. I particularly liked the way the author stitched in

to the text relevant extracts from judgments to which he referred. Section 5 will be read with interest by all pension lawyers as it deals with disclosure of information. There is also a section dealing with the powers of investment but this section should be read taking into account the fact that we do not have a Financial Services Act 1986. Part III of the book deals with sections on actuaries, surpluses and deficiencies, winding up of pension schemes and sex discrimi- nation in pension schemes. The Update October 1990 takes into account many UK cases dealing with sex discrimination. This is one of the few text books written by a lawyer which outlines what an actuary does and deals with certain actuarial matters which are of interest to lawyers and relevant to pension schemes. This can be easily read by lawyers who are not familiar with pensions matters. The section on sex discrimination now deals with all the significant EC Directives and cases both UK and European which led up to Barber - v- Guardian Royal Exchange. The Update October 1990 reflects all the litigation activity in pensions in the intervening year since the book was published. There is a new Part IV in the Update October 1990 containing a set of precedents including draft Trust Deeds and Rules. This is a welcome addition. While the Rules relate to UK occupational pension Schemes the Definitive Trust Deed and Interim Trust Deed checklist will be of much assistance to Irish Pension Lawyers. Part V details transcripts from significant UK pension cases and relevant EC Directives. There is also a full index and tables of cases and statutes. This work, particularly with Update October 1990, is of interest to both general practitioners and pension lawyers. Undoubtedly Part II dealing with Trustees is the corner-stone of the book and this is an area which a pension lawyer will dip into when dealing with various pension matters. The book as a whole is an extremely useful source book for general practi- tioners who are coming to pensions law with little background know- (Contd. on p. 208)

THE LAW OF OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEMES [By Nigel Inglis-Jones Q C. Publishers: Sweet & Maxwell October 1989 Update October 1990 Lose leaf: £90.00 stg.] I was asked to review this book shortly before the publication of the Pensions Bill 1990. The Pensions Bill was signed into law on 24th July 1990 but it was not until 1st January 1991 that many of the provisions giving legal effect to the Pensions Act were brought into being. The Pensions Act 1990 was the first statutory enactment deal- ing with pensions although Part VII of the Act also deals with disability schemes. In the United Kingdom statutory requirements for occupa- tional pension schemes are dealt w i t h in Finance Acts, Social Security Acts, Regulations etc. Irish pensions law. is an amalgam of common law principles and statutory enactments i.e. the Trustee Act 1893, Finance Act 1972 and the Pensions Act 1990. I make the foregoing comments as background to reviewing Mr. Nigel Inglis-Jones Q.C/s book. There are no Irish text books to date on occupational pension schemes. The author's book is basically an English text book. However, much of Irish general trust law governing the duties of trustees in Ireland derives from English trust law. When reading through the book I found it had all the hallmarks of being written by a lawyer who actually practises in the field of pensions. The book itself is in a loose leaf format which is a practical way of

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