Pinsent Masons advises Legal & General on the UK's largest pension buyout to date

Pinsent Masons pensions partner Matthew de Ferrars said: "This buy-out is part of a continuing trend of pension schemes and their employers going to the insurance market to secure scheme liabilities on an “all risks” basis. Pinsent Masons has worked on a number of high profile buy-ins, buyouts and longevity swaps including Babcock, MF Global, Cadbury’s, Denso, NSPCC and Uniac.”

Commenting on the deal Legal & General’s Nicole Kennedy said: “Matthew de Ferrars and his team were approached at very short notice but immediately got to grips with the task and provided clear, timely and pragmatic advice. From our perspective, the exercise was managed effectively, particularly given the scale of the project.” 

Pinsent Masons were able to deliver this transaction to the exceptionally short timetable by deploying a team of 17 specialist pension lawyers from its London, Leeds, Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow offices. This cross-office team was led by pensions partner Matthew de Ferrars with support from senior associates Rob Lawrence and Rob Tellwright.