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Portrait ofLaura Clarke

Laura Clarke

Partner

Contact
CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP
Cannon Place
78 Cannon Street
London
EC4N 6AF
United Kingdom
Languages English

Laura Clarke is a partner in the Pensions Team.  Laura has extensive experience of advising employers and trustees on general pensions issues, litigation matters, Ombudsman investigations and the pensions aspects of corporate transactions. She has a broad practice with a particular recent focus on the Pensions Regulator investigations and funding issues for multi-billion pound pension schemes.  Laura also advises insurers and trustees on de-risking transactions including buy-ins and buy-outs.

She founded the CMS Pensions Independent Trustee Network in 2019 for professional pensions trustees who are not affiliated to any professional trustee companies who now meet on a bi-monthly basis to share CMS know-how on current pensions topics and issues that affect them as trustees.

She is the secretary of the Pensions Ombudsman Liaison Group where she meets regularly with the Pensions Ombudsman. She is also a member of the Pensions Ombudsman Legal Forum which is a group of private practice and in-house pensions lawyers who provide feedback and share ideas with the Pensions Ombudsman Legal team.

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Relevant experience

  • The Trustees of a £20bn final salary pension scheme on a £2.4bn funding package with the employer group and funding issues relating to the effects of COVID.
  • The Trustees of a £1bn pension scheme on a Pensions Regulator investigation and putting in place a security package including various guarantees from the French parent company.
  • The Trustees of a £10bn pension scheme during an attempted hostile takeover of the parent company.
  • A large dairy company on an innovative asset backed funding structure to fund the pension scheme using cheese/maturing stock as the underlying asset.
  • Several different trustee clients of large pension schemes on negotiating valuations with Pensions Regulator involvement and putting in place covenant improving security packages.
  • The trustees of a segregated 14 section pension scheme of c£3bn including advising on security packages, funding, corporate restructuring and conflict issues.
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Publications

  • Contributor to the Pensions Law Handbook (16th Edition), Bloomsbury Professional.
  • Jan 2021 - “The Pensions Ombudsman—key themes from the determinations”, Practice Note, Lexis PSL.
  • .Contributor to the Pensions Law Handbook (15th Edition), Bloomsbury Professional.
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Education

  • 2007 – LLB, University of Southampton, Southampton 
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CMS Pensions LawCast
Hosted by CMS Pensions experts, this series looks ahead to the key issues...

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30/01/2024
Pensions Ombudsman Update - January 2024
Welcome to the latest regular Pensions Ombudsman Update from the CMS Pensions Team. The Pensions Ombudsman resolves many cases every year which are not only important for the parties concerned, but can...
09/10/2023
CMS launches 16th edition of the Pensions Law Handbook
CMS is delighted to announce the launch of the 16th edition of the Pensions Law Handbook, the definitive guide to pensions law and practice in the UK. Written by the CMS pensions team, it is an essential...
28/03/2023
CMS Specialist Counsel: Pensions Regulator Investigations
Pensions regulatory and criminal investigations are pressurised, disruptive and come with a high risk. The CMS Pensions Team has the experience and depth of resource to assist quickly and effectively...
03/02/2023
Trustee Knowledge Update – November 2022 - January 2023
Trustees of occupational pension schemes have a statutory duty to ensure that they have an adequate knowledge and understanding of the legal issues relevant to their scheme.  They must also ensure that...
26/01/2023
Pensions Ombudsman Update - January 2023
Welcome to the latest regular Pensions Ombudsman Update from the CMS Pensions Team. The Pensions Ombudsman resolves many cases every year which are not only important for the parties concerned, but can...
25/10/2022
Download the latest ‘CMS Pensions LawCast’ episode #43 - Case law update...
Hosted by CMS Pensions experts this series looks ahead at the key issues developing in the pensions sector with a specific focus on what you need to know, and practically, what you need to do. In this...
26/07/2022
Pensions Ombudsman Update - July 2022
Welcome to the latest regular Pensions Ombudsman Update from the CMS Pensions Team.The Pensions Ombudsman resolves many cases every year which are not only important for the parties concerned, but can...
15/09/2021
Download the latest ‘CMS Pensions LawCast’ episode #29 – Equality, Diversity...
Hosted by CMS Pensions experts this series looks ahead at the key issues developing in the pensions sector with a specific focus on what you need to know, and practically, what you need to do. In this...
26/05/2020
Download the latest ‘CMS Pensions LawCast’ episode #1 – Reducing Contributions
Hosted by CMS Pensions experts this series looks ahead at the key issues developing in the pensions sector with a specific focus on what you need to know, and practically, what you need to do. In our...