Britvic PLC (claimant/appellant) –v- Britvic Pensions Ltd and another
12th – 13th May 2021
NOTE: THIS IS A LIVE STREAM OF A FULLY REMOTE HEARING BEING HEARD BY MICROSOFT TEAMS
The Claimant seeks permission to appeal the declarations in respect of Rules C.2 (2) and C.10(2) at 6.1 – 6.6 of the order of HHJ Hodge QC dated 29 January 2020, sitting as a High Court Judge.
The Judge construed certain provisions of the Trust Deed and Rules dated 12 December 2007 (as amended by a Deed of Alteration dated 30 June 2008) dealing with increases to defined benefit pensions in excess of Guaranteed Minimum Pensions (Rule C.10 (2)) paid from the Britvic Pension Plan (BPP), an occupational pension scheme, and the revaluation of deferred benefits (Rule C.2.(2)). The judgment notes [10] that the amended claim form also expressly addresses the equivalent Rules in the Trust Deed and Rules dated 31 January 2003.
The Judge found the relevant power was one to increase (but not to reduce) the default (capped) rate set by reference to the RPI. Pursuant to CPR 19.7 he also appointed the Second Respondent (a member of the BPP) as a representative of those who might be affected.
The Claimant is the Principal Employer of the BPP; the First Respondent is the sole Trustee of the BPP. There is an estimated potential financial impact of the issue in excess of 100 million pounds.
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