Rachel Uttley > Addleshaw Goddard > Leeds, England > Lawyer Profile
Addleshaw Goddard Offices
3 SOVEREIGN SQUARE
SOVEREIGN STREET
LEEDS
LS1 4ER
England
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Rachel Uttley
Work Department
Pensions (commercial division).
Position
Rachel advises trustees and corporates on all aspects of occupational and personal pension schemes. She has particular expertise in pension scheme mergers, DB liability management, corporate transactions and employer debt issues. She is the team’s expert on buy-in and buy-out transactions. She is also part of the SIPPs and pensions products team and advises SIPP providers and trustees on establishing and amending SIPPs and all day-to-day queries relating to the operation of SIPPs. Her clients include the trustees of the lbstock Pension Scheme, Shepherd Building Group, WPP, Carclo plc and the Co-operative Group.
Rachel’s recent experience includes:
advising the UK subsidiary a NASDAQ listed business specialising in connectivity infrastructure and services for global deployments of broadband networks on all their UK pensions issues, including advice on scheme funding negotiations, how to manage a legacy error where administration practice did not accord with scheme rules and the buyout and wind up of the DB pension scheme with a UK insurer;
advising the trustees of a DB scheme in relation to administration errors resulting in overpayments to members and the legal and practical issues for the trustees in determining how to manage this and mitigate the risk of complaints from affected members;
advising a sponsoring employer of a DB scheme on the ability to switch from RPI to CPI for pension increases as part of wider strategic discussions regarding the DB scheme;
advising the trustees of a DB scheme on a very successful pension increase exchange exercise and a subsequent enhanced transfer value exercise;
advising trustees on the implications of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the steps required to ensure compliance;
advising a sponsoring employer on potential equalisation exposure in over 25 different legacy pension arrangements including advice on both technical and strategic and practical issues relating to how to deal with remediation of benefits;
advising a sponsoring employer on the switching off of long-standing discretionary practice previously exercised in member’s favour and the legal risks including whether the discretion may have converted into a legal right;
advising the trustees of a £600mil+ DB scheme on the closure to future accrual undertaken by way of extrinsic contracts with members and their obligations and duties;
advising a corporate in connection the pensions issues arising out of a major disposal of certain divisions of the business which participated in the group’s DB pension scheme, which included putting in place a £15mil pensions bond with two bond providers for the benefit of the purchaser;
advising the trustees of a DB scheme on a professional negligence claim and potential rectification claim arising out an historic drafting error in their governing documents;
advising in connection with the complex separation of benefits in a SSAS arising out of a business dispute; and
advising numerous clients on changes to their life assurance arrangements and the introduction of excepted group life schemes and advising on the governance of these schemes.
Career
Trainee solicitor with Addleshaw Booth & Co based in Leeds 2001-2003; admitted in September 2003; associate in pensions at Addleshaw Goddard 2003-2007 (for the first two years practiced pensions and share schemes mixed discipline); managing associate in pensions at Addleshaw Goddard 2007-2015; partner in pensions at Addleshaw Goddard (May 2015); working cross site in our Leeds and Manchester offices. Director of Sovereign Trustees Limited, the independent pension trustee company operated by Addleshaw Goddard.
Memberships
Member of the Association of Pension Lawyers and on the committee for the North East Association of Pension Lawyers.
Education
Woldgate School, Pocklington; University of Nottingham (1999 First Class BA Hons in History); College of Law, York (2000 Common Professional Examination (Distinction), 2001 Legal Practice Course (Distinction)).
Leisure
Enjoys cooking, ballet dancing and spending time with her two young daughters.
Lawyer Rankings
Yorkshire and the Humber > Employment > Pensions
(Leading individuals)Addleshaw Goddard leverages the expertise of its highly experienced team to service a number of significant funds in a range of de-risking, transactional, or more specialist matters. Rachel Uttley sits at the helm of the team, leading on the specialist bulk annuity mandates, but also with considerable expertise in transactional work and in providing advice on a range of strategic matters. The ‘excellent team’ also consists of the ‘direct, clear, robust and pragmatic’ Jade Murray, who boasts a specialism in SIPPs and pension products; and legal directors Richard Shelton and Jonathan Stewart, who are both highly experienced in this sector. Managing Associates Leanne Oddy, Alexandra Frickle, Andrew Steer, and Adam Lees are also of note.
London > Employment > Pensions: dispute resolution
Addleshaw Goddard‘s pensions disputes team is headed by ‘formidable negotiator‘ Susan Garrett. The team is described as ‘dynamic’ and as being formed of lawyers who make ‘almost superhuman’ efforts to reach the best outcome for clients. Its recent work includes equalisation cases, rectification actions, as well as Pension Ombudsman and IDRP complaints, which is a specialty for Rachel Uttley. Jade Murray is adept at assisting clients on the pensions matters in transactions, in particular, whilst Rachel Rawnsley is experienced acting for blue-chip pension trustees. Other key contacts within the team include Clare Dwyer and associate Triin Ungert.
Lawyer Rankings
- Leading individuals Yorkshire and the Humber > Employment > Pensions
- Pensions Yorkshire and the Humber > Employment
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Finance > Banking and finance
- Dispute resolution > Banking litigation
- Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: Leeds and West Yorkshire; North Yorkshire
- Real estate > Commercial property: Leeds and West Yorkshire; North Yorkshire
- Real estate > Construction
- Corporate and commercial > Corporate and commercial: Leeds, West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire
- Employment > Employment: Leeds and West Yorkshire; North Yorkshire
- Projects, energy and natural resources (including PFI) > Infrastructure and energy
- Finance > Insolvency and corporate recovery
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > IT and telecoms
- Employment > Pensions
- Private client > Personal tax, trusts and probate
- Real estate > Property litigation
- Transport
Firm Rankings
- Private client > Charities and not-for-profit
- Corporate and commercial > Corporate tax
- Corporate and commercial > EU and competition
- Public sector > Health
- Employment > Health and safety
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Intellectual property
- Public sector > Local government
- Insurance > Professional negligence
- Real estate > Planning