The focus of this book is on the law and regulation of pension plans "arising from employment"--that is, plans sponsored by employers or trade unions that are registered with the Canada Revenue Agency for tax purposes and with a provincial or the federal pension regulator for pension standards purposes. These include pension plans covering employees in both the private sector and the broader public sector in all three levels of government.

Pension Law examines

• the jurisdiction, application, and scope of pension legislation;
• the duties and reach of pension regulators;
• the minimum substantive employee protections provided in the legislation;
• the duties and standards of care for pension plan administrators in the day-to-day administration of the plan;
• pension plan solvency;
• the rules and standards associated with contributions, plan valuation, and investment of the pension fund;
• the principles concerning how a pension plan can be amended;
• the legal implications of a reorganization or sale of the employer's business or other employer-initiated restructuring of the pension plan;
• how and when a pension plan can be terminated;
• the rights and responsibilities resulting from the termination of a pension plan; and
• the regulatory requirements and legal principles revolving around the policy-laden issue of withdrawing pension plan "surplus."

The book will be an invaluable resource for anyone who needs to understand this complex legal and regulatory environment including lawyers, human resources officers, plan administrators and trustees, actuaries, accountants, public servants, and union officials.

Detailed Table of Contents (PDF)

Summary Table of Contents

Foreword - Justice Eileen E. Gillese
Preface
Selected List of Abbreviations

CHAPTER 1: Legal Nature of the Pension
CHAPTER 2: Foundations
CHAPTER 3: Reach
CHAPTER 4: Regulation
CHAPTER 5: Minimum Standards
CHAPTER 6: Administration
CHAPTER 7: Funding
CHAPTER 8: Amendment
CHAPTER 9: Wind Up
CHAPTER 10: Surplus

Table of Cases
Index
About the Author

"Ari Kaplan has written a book that provides a framework within which to understand pension law. It is balanced and comprehensive in its treatment of the issues. But, in addition, the book explains and explores the detailed considerations that underlie each issue. An enormous amount of work has been done to locate the relevant materials and then to disseminate the information in an organized, readable fashion."
-- Justice Eileen E. Gillese, from the Foreword

"Pension Law is a highly valuable work which constitutes a sourcebook for those (scholars and practitioners alike) who have to deal with such a complicated matter, pension plan governance being structured by labour relations, public policy, and corporate strategy. Moreover, the federal structure of Canadian pension regulation needed a detailed analysis of the foundation and governance of registered pension plans. The most important achievement of the book is to provide a clear, concise, and rigorous understanding of the "basic concepts of the law and regulation of registered pension plans arising from employment in Canada" (p. xxix)."
-- Frédéric Hanin, Université Laval
Industrial Relations Quarterly Review (2006) 61:4

"...provides a valuable, much-needed reference resource for lawyers and other professionals in the retirement income security field. The book, which was cited by the Supreme Court of Canada in Buschau v. Rogers Communications Inc. within months of its publication, is thus an excellent addition to the sparse literature on pension law in Canada.... ...Kaplan writes in a style that is easily accessible to lawyers and non-lawyers alike.... If you are in the pensions industry, Pension Law should be in your library."

-- Randy Bauslaugh & Barbara Austin (Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP) in the Canadian Labour & Employment Law Journal (13 C.L.E.L.J. 165)

Review in the Estates, Trusts and Pensions Journal:
(2007) 26 E.T.P.J. 197

Review in the The Advocate:
The Advocate (2006) 64:6