Doug is a partner in the pensions and employment team leading our pensions advice and providing strategic employment advice to a range of not-for-profit, charitable and commercial organisations. He aims to understand what clients need and provide practical, commercial solutions to legal issues which are tailored to their needs and presented in a clear, straightforward way.
Doug has been appointed to the Association of Pension Lawyers’ public sector committee, leads our relationship with the National Local Government Pension Scheme Frameworks and manages Anthony Collins’ appointment to the approved panel of legal services providers for funds and employers for this framework. He is experienced in advising LGPS funds and employers on a range of issues including admissions and exits, staff transfers, internal dispute resolution procedure complaints and pensions ombudsman applications. Doug also advises on appeals against penalties imposed by the Pensions Regulator.
With substantial experience in a wide range of different areas including expertise in advising on the employment and pensions implications of outsourcing arrangements, Doug regularly supports housing and social care providers and local government organisations on public sector pension schemes, changing terms and conditions, TUPE and redundancy.
“He has sound knowledge of the area and is good on both defined contribution and defined benefit schemes.” Chambers and Partners, 2021
My specialisms
- Pensions
- TUPE
- Change programmes – redundancy and terms and conditions
- Local Government Pension Scheme - Appeals against Pension Regulator penalties
My insights
![Academies and LGPS pass-through arrangements](https://images.passle.net/fit-in/400x400/filters:crop(79,0,2260,1272)/Passle/5f4626f28cb62a0ab4152da6/SearchServiceImages/2024-06-11-09-46-18-503-66681cea6b1812ad81228226.jpg)
The DfE has provided welcome clarity on what approvals are needed when an academy enters into an agreement with a contractor to share the...
![LGPS surpluses – Could they help to plug a hole in local authority finances?](https://images.passle.net/fit-in/400x400/filters:crop(0,797,1994,1120)/Passle/5f4626f28cb62a0ab4152da6/MediaLibrary/Images/2024-06-10-16-04-03-277-666723f3fa5af7a9dd4c1fe1.png)
With local authority finances under significant pressure and no sign of more money in the event of a change of government, creative ways...
![Paying a forfeit - criminal acts and pensions](https://images.passle.net/fit-in/400x400/filters:crop(0,173,2160,1212)/Passle/5f4626f28cb62a0ab4152da6/SearchServiceImages/2024-06-07-13-38-27-351-66630d53aa6e19ce7daade78.jpg)
A council tax and recovery team leader has admitted to de-frauding Aberdeen City Council of over £1 million over a period of 17 years. ...
![LGPS surpluses – Could they help to plug a hole in local authority finances?](https://cdn.anthonycollins.com/wp-content/uploads/Pensions-600x589.png)
With local authority finances under significant pressure and no sign of more money in the event of a change of...
![Outsourcing the problem: equal pay and local authority trading companies](https://cdn.anthonycollins.com/wp-content/uploads/iStock-139681720-1-600x450.jpg)
The most high-profile story has been Birmingham City Council’s issuing of a section 114 notice over an equal pay...
![Local Government Pension Scheme 2022 valuation outcome – decoding the numbers](https://cdn.anthonycollins.com/wp-content/uploads/Piggy-bank-yellow-background-768x501.jpg)
With the three-yearly funding valuation of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) now complete, the headline is...