The Beckmann case – Practical implications for employers and trustees of occupational pension schemes

Abstract

This paper reviews the legal issues in the Beckmann case regarding the transfer of a right to early payment of pension on redundancy and whether such rights fall within the meaning of old age benefits and are thus excluded from the Acquired Rights Directive and Transfer of Undertaking (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981. It considers the practical ramifications of the decision of the European Court of Justice that such benefits are not old age benefits and hence are not excluded from the application of the Acquired Rights Directive on a business transfer.