The legal case set to be fought next month between The Pensions Regulator and the administrators of the Lehman Brothers and Nortel Networks estates could have profound and dreadful implications for pension schemes throughout the UK.

The estates of Lehman Brothers and Nortel are seeking to avoid having to pay a total of more than £2bn into their respective pension funds. Lehman has been asked to pay £148m while Nortel has been asked to pay £2.1bn by the regulator, which this year issued Financial Support Directives. These are demands for a parent company to provide a mechanism for financially supporting the underfunded pension scheme of a subsidiary - less onerous than a Contribution Notice, which calls for cash, but nevertheless a serious demand.