Pension Enforcement
In this update, we review a recent family law case concerning pension enforcement and highlight the practical lessons it offers for family lawyers when dealing with pension sharing orders and their implementation.
We provide specialist support services to family lawyers and their clients, including shadow expert consultancy, PoDE reports, and pension sharing implementation. Alongside this, we also offer training and technical updates for professional family lawyers. Please note: these updates are intended solely for professional use. They are not designed for retail clients and should not be relied upon as financial advice.
This recent case of AP v TP (Pension Enforcement) [2025] EWFC 190 (B) set aside the wife’s pension sharing order due to her noncompliance to implement the court order.
We show below a link to the judgement.
https://caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewfc/b/2025/190/data.pdf
This judgement highlights several issues: –
Aviva restrictions on implementation
The husband was forced to bring this action as he had reached age 70 and wanted to put his Aviva pension into payment which was his majority pension arrangement.
Aviva have had a stance for a number of years that once they are aware that a pension sharing order has been made by the Court that they lockdown the plan.
This means that they will not allow: –
- payment of benefits to commence including the payment of a tax free cash son
- for a plan that is already in payment any further payments to be taken
- transfer of the plan to an alternative pension provider
- any switching of investment funds
- any further payments into the plan
These restrictions remain in place until the implementation of the pension sharing order has been completed.
Whilst this seems to have caused a problem in this case, I have to admit that I do understand why Aviva have taken this stance to avoid the issues of clawbacks and funds no longer being available.
As specialist financial planners we have been advising clients and family lawyers on how, if possible, to avoid these restrictions by careful pre planning early in the divorce process.
Variation of a Pension Sharing Order
It also highlights that once the pension sharing order has become effective there is no provision to vary or discharge a pension sharing order.
Again, we have encountered clients who have continued to try and renegotiate the settlement after the Court Orders have been made only to find that their pension sharing order is set in stone.
Early involvement of specialist financial planners – such as us!!
Equally important it shows the need for specialist financial advisers such as ourselves to be able to engage with the clients as early as possible so that these potential problems can be identified or avoided so that by the time of the Court issues the pension sharing order all the documentation is ready to go and not being the start the of process and that a pension sharing order can then implemented within a matter of weeks rather than months and years.
We have assisted a number of clients over the years who have found it difficult to engage in the implementation of a pension sharing order but by taking the time and with quite a bit of hand holding we have carefully explained the process giving them the confidence to complete the implementation process which we were then able to do in a timely manner.