Cases reported in 2007

• Palacios de la Villa v Cortefiel Servicios SA
  European Court of Justice
  Age discrimination - general principle of community law - setting automatic date at which worker must retire - Directive 2000/78/EC

• Stubbs & anor v Commissioners for HM Revenue & Customs
  Special Commissioner
  Appeal by taxpayer in relation to what constituted a transfer of pension

• Ford v Commissioners for HM Revenue & Customs
  Special Commissioner
  Payment of shortfall referring to widow's pension - effective change in the terms of the pension scheme - nature of payments - income - instalments of capital

• Bloxham v Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
  Employment Tribunal
  Age discrimination - timing of Regulations describing discrimination on age grounds - jurisdiction - provision for retirement allowances - further covered by Regulation 11 and Schedule 2 to the Regulations - if discriminatory whether actions constituted proportionate means for achieving a legitimate aim

• Walker v Scottish Equitable plc & anor
  High Court (Chancery Division)
  Advice in relation to drawdown facility - nature and extent of advice - polarisation

• Unison v Allen & ors
  Employment Appeal Tribunal
  Equal Pay Act - Pension Rights - effect on same of TUPE transfer - time limit on action - effect of decision of House of Lords in Powerhouse Retail v Burroughs

• Secretary of State for Health v Rance & ors
  Employment Appeal Tribunal
  Equal Pay Act - Part-time pensions - Preston case - jurisdiction - effective time limits - the meaning of compromise

• Tahmassebi v Persia International Bank plc
  High Court (Queen's Bench Division)
  Compromise of proceedings before industrial tribunal – meaning of term relating to pensions – construction – Iranian law – limitation defence

• The Queen on the application of Bruce v Financial Ombudsman Services Ltd & ors
  High Court (Queen's Bench Division)
  Alleged breach of natural justice – Financial Ombudsman Service Rules – propriety of handling of complaint – need for service – justice of outcome

• Sovereign Trustees Ltd & anor v Glover & ors
  High Court (Chancery Division)
  Construction of Rules – existing of, or validity of, resolution – validity of introduction of money purchase section

• JP Morgan Fleming Claverhouse Investment Trust plc & anor v The Commissioners of HM Revenue & Customs
  European Court of Justice
  Preliminary ruling – interpretation of Article 13B(d)(6) of Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC – current system of Value Added Tax – status of investment trusts – special investment funds

• Commission for the European Communities v Belgium
  European Court of Justice
  Deduction of employers’ contributions etc in respect of supplementary pension and life assurance – legality of condition that tax exemptions apply only if paid to an undertaking established in Belgium – freedom to provide services – freedom of establishment – free movement of capital

• Cripps v Trustee Solutions Ltd & ors
  Court of Appeal
  Impact of Article 141 (formerly Article 119) of Amended Treaty of Rome – Barber v Guardian Royal Exchange – the Barber corridor – effect on priority order –interpretation of section 73 Pensions Act 1995 as amended by Occupational Pension Schemes (Winding-up) Regulations 1996
  

• National Pensions Office v Jonkman & anor
  European Court of Justice
  Equal treatment for men and women – equal pension treatment – statutory schemes – Directive 79/7/EEC – legality of demands for catch-up contributions – effect of amount payable in relation to enforcement of European rights – effect of interest as a barrier to enforcement of rights – principle of effectiveness – effect on Member State in relation to effectiveness of domestic legislation

• Davies v Saint-Gobain Calmar Limited & anor
  High Court (Chancery Division)
  Construction of pensions promise – effect of creation of pension scheme – effect of subsequent contractual variation

• Secretary of State for Defence v The Pensions Appeal Tribunal and various other interested parties
  High Court (Queen's Bench Division)
  Judicial review – decisions made by the Pensions Appeal Tribunal – interpretation of statutory provisions relating to time limits – relevant law relating to such decisions

• AF Blakemore & Son Ltd & anor v Machin & anor
  High Court (Chancery Division)
  Appeal from Pensions Ombudsman – construction of trust deed – whether bonuses included in pensionable earnings – effect of Compromise Agreement – effect of oral variation agreement

• Robins & ors v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
  European Court of Justice
  Occupational pension schemes – protection of rights of employees on the insolvency of their employer – Directive 80/987/EEC – Article 8 – extent of protection afforded by Directive – liability of Member State to incorporate protections under domestic law – consequences of failure

• Mandrake Holdings Ltd & anor v Balanus Ltd (formerly known as Countrywide Assured Group plc)
  Court of Appeal
  Personal pensions – the mis-selling review – effect in relation to corporate transaction – construction of document

• Jones v Bright Capital Ltd & ors
  High Court (Chancery Division)
  Redundancy package – pension entitlement – proper construction of an offer – admissibility of pre-action correspondence

• L & ors v M Limited
  High Court (Chancery Division)
  PPF – entry – statutory debt provisions – effect of apportionment –significance of calculation date for a section 75/75A debt – compromising a section 75 debt on meaning of reducing a debt for the purpose of regulation 2(2) of the PPF Entry Rules

• Denkavit Internationaal BV & anor v Ministre de l’Économie, des Finances et de l’Industrie
  European Court of Justice
  Dividends paid to non-resident companies – legality of withholding tax – relevancy of taxation position in relation to Member State of the resident company and that of the non-resident company

• The Queen on the application of Bradley & ors v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions & anor
  High Court (Queen’s Bench Division)
  Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration – consequence of findings – maladministration – causation – obligation on Secretary of State to consider pension losses flowing from failure of occupational pension schemes – pensions as property – human rights implications

• Jasmine Trustees Ltd & ors v Wells & Hind (a firm) & anor
  High Court (Chancery Division)
  Preliminary issue – meaning of word ‘individuals’ – section 37(1)(c) of the Trustee Act 1925

• Nason v Commissioners for HM Revenue & Customs
  Special Commissioner for HMRC
  Payment of AVCs – effect of the 15 per cent of salary limit – errors in remitting payment – payments made to mitigate loss caused by failure in contribution