Our Pensions Group

Our Pensions Group consists of lawyers from various disciplines, such as corporate, litigation, tax, employment and financial services. These different backgrounds enable us to provide specialized, practical advice on legal aspects of all kinds of retirement income and employee benefit arrangements. We act for many different participants in these arrangements, including plan administrators, employers, boards of directors, trustees, regulators, investment managers and plan beneficiaries, which enables us to provide comprehensive advice on pension and benefit issues. Members of our Group are active in professional organizations and industry groups in the pensions, benefits and investment fields, and speak and write frequently on relevant issues.

Our Services

Plan Design

  • Reviewing and drafting pension and benefit plans and amendments
  • Reviewing and drafting employee communications

Plan Administration

  • Advising on pension plan and pension fund governance, including fiduciary duties, proper delegation and statutory requirements.
  • Strategic advice and advocacy regarding legislative and regulatory reform.
  • Legal compliance audits of pension plans and pension funds.
  • Legal opinions concerning pension legislation, plan terms and rights of plan members.
  • Advising with respect to family law issues concerning benefit entitlements, including division of pension entitlements upon marriage breakdown.

Investments and Funding

  • Preparation of investment agreements and policies.
  • Advising administrators on pension fund investments, including structuring and compliance.
  • Advising investment advisors and consultants on the regulation of the investment of pension fund assets and pension-eligible investment products, including innovative investments such as derivatives and hedge funds.
  • Reviewing and drafting funding agreements including master trust agreements, pension trust agreements and insurance contracts.

Transactions

  • Amendments, mergers, demergers, terminations and wind-ups of pension plans.
  • Corporate purchases, sales, mergers and other transactions involving pension and benefit plans.
  • Advising regarding entitlement to pension fund surplus, and the recovery of surplus, including surplus sharing agreements and contribution holidays.

Litigation

  • Acting for plan administrators, employers, boards of directors, trustees, regulators, investment managers and plan beneficiaries.
  • Negotiating with regulators such as FSCO and OSFI, and appearing before tribunals such as the Financial Services Tribunal on pension and benefits issues.
  • Acting for clients in class action lawsuits, actions, and applications, at all levels of Court including the Supreme Court of Canada.
  • Civil litigation involving issues of negligence, breach of contractual and fiduciary duties, breach of trust and statutory compliance.
  • In the context of defined benefit pans, advising on, negotiating and litigating issues with respect to surplus ownership, surplus sharing agreements, variation of trusts, contribution holidays, administrative expenses, and the obligation of pension plan administrators to supervise investment managers.
  • In the context of defined contribution plans, advising on, negotiating and litigating issues arising from plan member communications and the selection and supervision of advisors.

Tax

  • Advising on tax compliance issues relevant to registered pension plans and other registered plans, including the requirements for obtaining and maintaining registered status and other investment restrictions.
  • Advising on master trusts, pooled fund trusts, pension real estate corporations and other investment vehicles, both domestic and foreign.
  • Providing tax advice on supplemental retirement arrangements (including retirement compensation arrangements), stock option, phantom stock and stock appreciation rights plans and other employee/executive benefit plans and on deferred profit sharing plans (DPSPs), registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs), registered retirement income funds (RRIFs), registered education savings plans (RESPs) and tax free savings accounts (TFSAs).

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