Aaron Dunning-Foreman Principal Associate Pensions Disputes

Aaron Dunning-Foreman

Aaron is a member of the firm's specialist pensions disputes team. Aaron's practice is focused on resolving pensions disputes or matters that might become contentious. His work ranges from advising on member complaints to High Court litigation, including professional negligence claims and applications to the High Court for directions as to the appropriate construction of pension scheme rules.

The problem prevention end of Aaron's practice involves reviewing historic documentation and finding ways of resolving issues to avoid Court, or delivering training sessions to employers and trustees about making and recording safe and defendable decisions. At the problem solution end, Aaron advises on the efficient and effective conduct of High Court litigation, develops strategies to resist claims from claims management companies and responding to Pension Ombudsman complaints or regulator queries. Aaron gets a buzz from helping clients through what may be a significant cause of stress in their professional lives and finding a solution that works best for them.

Experience

• Advising on a potential dispute in which it was alleged that the trustee had caused a member to lose fixed protection and incur a significant tax liability. We were able to resolve the dispute by convincing the member's legal team to drop allegations and ask the Court to make a declaration that protected the member's fixed protection. The member's fixed protection was restored and our client was not drawn into costly litigation.
• Advising on the termination of an administration agreement, balancing the need to avoid significant early termination charges whilst avoiding a dispute with the administrator. By taking a pragmatic approach we were able to convince the incumbent administrator to support the orderly transition to a new administrator and avoid a protracted contractual dispute.
• Advising on multiple data subject access requests followed by claims from claims management companies in relation to historic member transfers. We supported our clients by developing an efficient strategy for managing the high volume of complaints in a proportionate and appropriately robust way.
• Supporting our client in seeking to correct historic payment errors with the risk of significant tax liabilities and charges. We worked with the administrator to engage with HMRC in an attempt to convince HMRC that significant tax charges and penalties did not arise. At the same time, we negotiated an agreement with the administrator to protect potential claims if tax charges were imposed.
• Advising on an application to the High Court seeking a declaration that changes it was intended to make to a pension scheme's rules were valid even though statutory requirements may not have been met.
• Assisting our client to investigate and collate evidence relating to a potential error in the scheme's governing documentation with the goal of convincing the employer to agree to amend the documentation without the need to embark on High Court litigation.
• Advising clients on highly complex claims again multiple defendants seeking damages in excess of £20m, successfully securing settlements on behalf of our client.
• Acting for our client in a novel claim brought against a scheme's former solicitors, trustees, and actuary alleging breach of trust, and negligence, successfully securing settlements on behalf of our client.
• Successfully defending a claim brought against our trustee client by an independent financial advisor alleging breach of statutory duty, defamation, breach of fiduciary duty and dishonesty in refusing to accept instructions on behalf of his client.
• Pursuing a breach of contract and negligence claim against benefit consultants for inappropriate auto-enrolment advice and the implementation of a salary sacrifice arrangement, successfully securing a settlement on behalf of our client.