Clifford Sims

Public Sector

• Providing legal advice to DCLG (now MHCLG) and the Cabinet Office on structural reform options for the LGPS in respect of collective investment vehicles and fund mergers.
• Strategic adviser to the Northern LGPS, ACCESS Pool funds, LGPS Central Pool funds and Border to Coast Pensions Partnership on investment structures, local government, corporate and procurement law.
• Project managing the procurement for the West Midlands Integrated Transport Authority and the West Midlands Pension Fund of the first bulk annuity purchase in the LGPS in a transaction with Prudential for £272 million.
• Advising Suffolk Pension Fund on a £240 million asset transition, involving seven different funds and numerous investment structures. Separately, advising the Fund on recovery options following the insolvency of MF Global.
• Advising the Royal Bank of Scotland on derivative protection for local government pension schemes including, in particular, the project management of the establishment of a bespoke hedging SPV, Blue Swan Global Investments, for Berkshire Pension Fund's inflation and interest rate liabilities of approximately £250 million.
• Negotiating and advising on the standardisation of global custody agreements and separately transition management agreements for LGPS funds resulting in a framework agreement covering six global custodian banks which is open to all LGPS funds.
• Drafting and negotiating for the West Midlands Pension Fund bespoke investment management agreements for various asset classes, and related transition management agreements and negotiating the fund’s entry into the Pensions Infrastructure Platform.

Private Sector

• Advising on the pensions implications of the New York and Milan listing of CNH Industrial NV and advice to the trustees of four schemes sponsored by the CNH and Fiat groups. Subsequently  negotiated complex funding support packages in respect of the schemes.
• Project management of the legal aspects of complex transitions for the Halliburton Group UK Pension Plan, including a major defined contribution transition (£150 million) and implementation of a fiduciary management mandate for defined benefit assets (£500 million).
• Implementing asset backed funding structures for Nuffield Health Pension Trustees Limited and Tennants Pension Trustees Limited.
• Advising numerous UK pension trustee clients on investment management agreements and pooled fund documentation across all asset classes and jurisdictions.
• Project management of benefit changes and restructurings (including closures to future accrual) for numerous employer and trustee clients, including schemes sponsored by Allianz Insurance, Compass Group PLC, State Street Bank and Halliburton Inc.
• Project managing liability-driven investment programmes in respect of schemes sponsored by Jaguar Landrover, Nuffield Health, IMI and Anglian Water covering several billion pounds of liabilities.