nplaw pensions legal experts
Pensions Secure advice

Pensions

Local government pension scheme (LGPS) funds

The law relating to LGPS funds – registered, funded, statutory, public- sector pension schemes – is a highly specialised area. Each regional fund is governed by an administering authority and administered, managed and funded at a local level. Local government lawyers are well -placed to understand an administering authority’s complex service requirements and able to provide the high level of contact needed to ensure that the authority’s legal risks are quickly identified and resolved. nplaw and its predecessor, Norfolk County Council’s legal team, have acted for Norfolk Pension Fund for many years and our lawyers work closely with their counterparts, giving advice on:

  • scheme governance and member related issues;
  • eligibility requirements, the payment of contributions and the benefit structure in this career-average scheme, as well as provisions regarding the scheme’s administration and management;
  • requirements of the admission agreement and bond regime;
  • responses to issues arising from admission agreements including, for example, pooling arrangements and deficit matters;
  • the effect of the Best Value Authorities Staff Transfers (Pensions) Direction 2007 providing for the inclusion of pension protection provisions in outsourcing agreements;
  • interactions with other pension schemes, for example NHS Pensions;
  • delivery mechanisms arising from LGPS reforms.

Commercial advice for LGPS funds

We also advise Norfolk Pension Fund on a range of business issues, such as:

  • the procurement of IT administration systems including tendering processes and contract negotiations;
  • employment law both in respect of individual issues and broader restructuring or outsourcing projects;
  • intellectual property matters;
  • information and data protection law;
  • property law.

The National LGPS Framework Project

nplaw’s LGPS lawyers have extended their niche specialism even further as legal advisers to the National LGPS Framework project. The project is a collaboration between several LGPS funds which has allowed its members to leverage their combined buying power resulting in significant savings whilst still supporting local decision making and service requirements. The framework is open to all LGPS funds and, increasingly, the wider public sector. nplaw has acted as legal adviser to the project since its inception, providing professional support across a range of tasks including extensive negotiations with financial services providers from across the industry.

For more information, please contact Sarah Gibb at sarah.gibb@norfolk.gov.uk or 01603 223852.