Decision on the partial liquidation of a professional pension foundation

Facts

The Pension Foundation for the personnel of the [A. SA] group was established on 24 January 1992. On 30 April 2003, [A. SA] sold the companies [D. SA] and [B. SA] to [E. SA] , resulting in the transfer of 73 employees from the Foundation to the [E.] Switzerland Pension Fund. At its extraordinary general meeting on 3 July 2003, the Foundation's Board decided on a partial liquidation based on an expert report. The Supervisory Authority approved this decision on 11 December 2003. [X.] and 30 co-appellants appealed against this decision to the Federal Appeals Commission, which rejected their appeal on 16 October 2006.

Considerations

The DFC held that the conditions for a partial liquidation were met in this case, in accordance with Art. 23(4) of the VBA. Indeed, the sale of the companies [D. SA] and [B. SA] by the [A. SA] Group constituted a restructuring that resulted in the departure of approximately 20% of the active insured persons from the Foundation. The DFC also ruled that the distribution of the Foundation's technical deficit, which amounted to 87.6% of the…