Susan Seller comments in Canadian Investment Review on legal considerations for pension funds making charitable donations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

She says there is a distinction between private plans and the larger public pension funds. “If you’re a large pension fund, like a public sector pension fund entity, that’s an institutional investor in its own right. They typically have policies around their charitable activities and any donations that they may make, and very specific objectives and policies that they follow including procedures for board approval, etc.” Susan adds that the concept of fiduciary duty does apply across the board.

Susan also says that plan sponsors or pension funds considering charitable donations should have a policy to address its objectives and parameters, as well as the procedure for approving it.