Nortel to block pension claims
Nortel Networks, the Canadian telecommunications equipment maker, and its creditors are seeking to block the UK pensions regulator from pursuing a claim worth as much as £2.1bn ($3.3bn) against the firm’s worldwide assets to cover the shortfall in its UK scheme. Nortel and its UK subsidiary filed for bankruptcy protection from creditors in January 2009, leaving behind underfunded schemes in the UK and US and Canada. The UK Pensions Regulator has set a 1 March deadline for a response from Nortel. The company was once the biggest telecoms equipment maker in North America but it filed for bankruptcy protection in January 2009.