The members of our team primarily advise public and private sector employers, pension plan administrators, and actuarial and benefits consultants on the various legal issues relating to this area of law, including:

• pension plan administration and governance, statutory compliance and plan termination;
• multi-jurisdictional and multi-employer pension plan issues;
• establishment and negotiation of pension plans in the context of collective bargaining;
• changes to benefits provided under pension plans;
• pension plan splits and mergers;
• issues relating to pension plan surplus assets and their use (contribution holidays, payment of administrative expenses and funding of plan improvements);
• analysis of various types of insurance coverage for pension plan administrators and pension and benefits consultants;
• changes to benefit programs (including post-retirement benefits);
• drafting and implementation of retirement compensation agreements.

The members of the team also represent our clients before the courts, specialized arbitrators and the Tribunal administratif du Québec in the context of litigation, including class actions, involving issues related to pension plans and employee benefits. More specifically, they have acted in litigation raising various issues, such as:

• the use of pension plans surplus assets to fund improvements, take contribution holidays or pay administration costs;
• damage claims resulting from plan investments;
• the interpretation of plan provisions pertaining to benefits;
• the entitlement to plan improvements;
• the allocation of the surplus assets of a pension plan upon its termination;
• reduction of pension.

They also work with the firm’s Business Law Group on the various pension and benefits issues in mergers and acquisitions.