UK - Almost half of the pension funds surveyed by SEI Investments (47%) in the light of the Unilever/Merrill Lynch court case, settled out of court last week, say that they will review their investment management arrangements as a result.

SEI says the research shows that the Unilever court case raises wider concerns amongst pension professionals.

The survey reveals that 73% of pension funds feel that the court case puts more responsibility on trustees, while 83% of funds indicate their requirement for a clear and more efficient flow of information from their investment managers and consultants.

Half the pension fund professionals surveyed also felt that the way their investment manager kept them informed of the progress of their fund could be improved.

The survey was conducted amongst financial directors and pensions fund managers at 30 large UK companies and was carried out in the week that the settlement was agreed.

Commenting on the research Patrick Disney, head of institutional business development UK at SEI said: “The Merrill Lynch court case has raised several questions about the existing pension fund management model. Concerns about transparency, communication, responsibility and procedures which were highlighted by the case, were mirrored by the issues raised by both the Myners Report and by the introduction of the new accounting standard FRS 17. These combined concerns are encouraging trustees to reassess their existing pension fund management arrangements. “



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