Squire Patton Boggs

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A Trustee-like Approach to Green Gilts? Guest Blogger and Trustee Corporation Director, Glyn Ryland, Shares His Views

Governments can do many things to help tackle climate change. Insulation in older houses is in the news. New houses matter too. I know of a new housing estate, under construction now, with a gas boiler in every home. No heat pumps. No solar panels. Planning laws could be tweaked to make that impossible (or … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Ruling Limits Insurer and Employer Contraceptive Obligations (US)

Stacey Grundman and Doug Anderson recently published an article on the Supreme Court’s decision adopted under the Trump administration significantly cutting back the requirement that insurers and group health plans provide coverage for contraceptives without cost sharing under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) on our Employment Law Worldview blog. To read the full blog post online here.… Continue Reading

Top 10 Employee Benefits Issues in a Slowing Economy

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), commonly known as the “coronavirus” has raised many challenges for businesses. Among those challenges are the variety of employee related issues being raised. In addition to complying with various employment laws, including the new emergency leave laws and tax credits (see our blog), employers also have to consider the impact on … Continue Reading

Is LGPS Governance Up To Scratch?

From asset pooling and actuarial valuations to administration and data, local government pension schemes have a lot to think about this year – meaning good governance is more important than ever. In this podcast episode recorded for Pensions Expert, Kirsty Bartlett, partner in our Pensions team, and Ian Colvin, head of LGPS Benefits and Governance … Continue Reading

2019 AGM season – the Investment Association sets the bar

The Investment Association has published its annual letter to Remuneration Committee chairs and updated Principles of Remuneration (“Principles”) for the next AGM season. Most of the changes reflect the new UK Corporate Governance Code and the Investment Association (“IA”) has updated the Principles to make them “clearer and sharper”. That certainly describes the tone taken … Continue Reading

Back to Basics

“You need to get the basics right, including giving us up-to-date information about the scheme, and we will take action if you fail.”  The Pensions Regulator’s (TPR) move towards being a “clearer, quicker and tougher regulator” is apparent from this statement, taken from its most recently published compliance and enforcement bulletin. TPR has recently fined … Continue Reading

EMI options – the wait is over!

Since 6 April 2018 companies have been unable to grant new EMI options, because the existing EU state aid approval expired without fresh approval having been received. So there has been much excitement today at the news that the EU Commission has now given state aid approval, and companies can now grant new EMI options. … Continue Reading

Happy New Tax Year!

To celebrate the new tax year, we provide a round-up of some of the pensions measures that come into force on 6 April 2018. Bulk transfer without consent of DC benefits At last, trustees and employers can close an occupational money purchase (DC) plan without the pension plan actuary having to decide how the certification requirement … Continue Reading

EMI option hiccup

The vagaries of EU State Aid approvals probably pass most of us by.  However, they have come centre stage for many SMEs with HMRC’s announcement that it is not expected that an extension to the UK’s existing State Aid approval for EMI options will be granted before 6th April, when the current approval expires. HMRC … Continue Reading

Holiday plans delayed! – but only for SAYE payment holidays…

Participants in Save as Your Earn (SAYE) schemes are currently able to take a “payment holiday” of up to six months. This helps participants keep their SAYE options by allowing them to take a break from making monthly payments, for example while they are on maternity leave. In the Autumn Budget the government announced the … Continue Reading

What does US tax reform mean for non-US institutional investors – and UK pension funds in particular?

Colleagues have previously blogged about US tax reform and the impact on US retirement plan provisions. We highlight in this blog the key takeaway points from the US tax reform that will impact upon non-US institutional investors.  In particular, it is worth noting that pension funds investing through partnership structures and/or real estate may be … Continue Reading

Why might you need to know the birthdays of your pension plan actuary and investment manager?

…… The answer is not so you don’t forget to send them a card! If you don’t know, please read on. We recently issued a communication in relation to the new anti-money laundering requirements affecting pension plan trustees, along with an earlier blog, which set out the steps that trustees should be taking in order … Continue Reading

Carillion and the “failure” of clawback

The collapse of Carillion has raised many issues relating to public procurement, the actions of the board and the role of the auditors. But a press release by the Institute of Directors suggesting that in 2016 Carillion relaxed the clawback conditions that applied to bonuses has raised questions over remuneration governance. The change seems to … Continue Reading

The FRC puts the UK Corporate Governance Code on a diet

The Financial Reporting Council has published for consultation its review of the UK Corporate Governance Code.  This follows a fundamental review, with the proposed revised Code being a slim shadow of its former self (13 pages instead of 32).  The FRC describes the result as “shortened and sharpened” but the outcome isn’t radical, with the … Continue Reading

Tottenham Hotspur FC 2 : 0 HM Revenue & Customs

Football, football teams, footballers, footballer’s pay… a comprehensive review of the case law on the taxation of termination payments… this one has got it all! The match… the case (HM Revenue & Customs v Tottenham Hotspur Limited) concerns termination payments made to Peter Crouch and Wilson Palacios. The facts are relatively straightforward. Both player’s contracts with Tottenham … Continue Reading

Investment Association sets bar for 2018 AGM season

The Investment Association (IA) has published its annual letter to Remuneration Committee chairs and updated its Principles of Remuneration (the “Principles”), and many companies will need to take action before their 2018 AGM. The IA is encouraging voluntary disclosure of CEO pay ratios in 2018 Directors’ Remuneration Reports, has introduced a new requirement to defer … Continue Reading

Age ain’t nothing but a number

With a whirlwind of changes enforced in the last seven years the state pension age, which remained unchanged from the 1940s until 2010, is yet again in for a shake-up. On 18 July, David Gauke, Work and Pensions secretary announced plans to bring forward the increase in state pension age to 68 – this will … Continue Reading

Hanging on the telephone

It’s time to hang up on cold callers! The loss of pension savings can have a devastating impact on an individual’s plans for retirement but this is an unfortunate reality for those who have fallen victim to pension scammers. The UK Government’s consultation response on pension scams shows its clear intention to ban cold calling … Continue Reading
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