Kevin Gude

Kevin advises on the design, implementation and operation of employer-funded medical benefit/healthcare trusts, including on the adoption or modernisation of trusts and on the creation of bespoke and master-trust products.

• Using employer-funded trusts as an efficient alternative to insured medical cover.
• Analysis of benefit design and advice on the creation of new benefits in light of medical developments and employee expectation (for example, experimental cancer care, gene therapy, and fertility treatment).
• Advising on the effect of the interaction between HMRC and FCA rules, inheritance tax, and employee benefit trust conditions.
• Advising on the inclusion of equity partners and other self-employed professionals. Identifying the points of interaction between the Trust and the employer’s EAP or other wellbeing programmes.

Kevin advises clients on trust-based and contractual group life, critical illness, and income protection schemes, including the provision of trustee guidance, regulatory compliance, discretionary benefits, eligibility, product delivery, and administration.

• Advised a global IT firm on the review and revision of its group life provision and the conclusion of separate complicated claims by members to the Pensions Ombudsman.
• Advised multiple motor manufacturers, institutional and international investment banks, a search engine company, energy businesses, global law firms and accountancies, restaurant chains, and utilities companies, on the design and implementation of their medical benefit plans for employees.
• Advised the trustees of numerous employer-funded group life assurance schemes on the identification of potential beneficiaries and the exercise of their discretionary power to distribute benefits.
• Advised two life insurers on the design and delivery of value-added services (GP services, EAP, etc.) to employees of group cover corporate customers.
• Advised two third-party medical benefits administrators on the design of their products, including tax rules, associated contractual revisions, and customer materials.
• Advised a religious body on regulatory compliance and fund investment associated with its provision and administration of an authorised pension scheme master trust, and its medical benefits trust.
• Advised an insurer associated with an established church on the modernisation of its medical benefits trust to dioceses and religious orders.
• Advised international law firm personnel and finance teams on the revision of its staff benefits packages.
• Advised an international employee benefits consultancy on the redesign of its own salary sacrifice and automatic enrolment offerings.

Kevin advises trustees and sponsoring employers on large pension schemes and master trusts, covering governance, regulatory compliance, funding, consolidation, authorisation, reporting, de-risking, and negotiations with regulators.

• Provided practical legal support to numerous pension scheme trustees on their administrative and governance obligations under pensions and tax law.
• Acted for the trustee of a commercial pensions master trust in obtaining and maintaining authorised status.
• Advised a pension trustee board on the successful consolidation of its commercial master trust with Pensions Regulator approval.
• Counsel to various pension trustee boards and sponsoring employers on compliance with regulatory administrative and reporting requirements.
• Negotiated on behalf of trustees and sponsoring employers during pension scheme funding reviews overseen by the Pensions Regulator.
• Advised a religious body on regulatory compliance and fund investment associated with its provision and administration of an authorised pension scheme master trust.

Kevin advises trustees of small self-administered occupational schemes (SSAS) and self-invested personal pension schemes (SIPPS) on governance, investment and loan documentation, rule revisions, member disputes, death benefits, and divorce-related aspects.

• Advised the trustees of a small self-administered pension scheme on the pensions aspects of divorce proceedings leading to a landmark High Court judgment.
• Advised the trustees of a small pension scheme on the transfer of funds and establishment of new trusts after the death of the original member.
• Advice on compliance with HMRC small scheme conditions.
• Provision of establishing and amending trust documents and rule amendments
• Advice to SSAS and SIPP providers on their regulatory, contractual and trust-based obligations and customer communications.

Member of GRiD, the industry body for the group risk protection sector

Member of the Employment Lawyers Association (ELA)