Facts
This decision concerns a dispute between I. (the claimant) and the Pension Fund of the personnel of company X and the Insurance Court of the canton of Solothurn. The claimant is entitled to a disability pension from the occupational pension scheme as of 1 September 1994. The disputed issue is whether the right to adjust this pension for inflation in accordance with Art. 36 OPA and Art. 20 of the regulations is offset by the fact that the claimant receives a total monthly pension of CHF 1,367, which is higher than the disability pension under the OPA.
Considerations
According to the prevailing case law and doctrine, Art. 36 OPA, which provides for the mandatory adjustment of survivors' and disability pensions to price developments, applies only in the field of mandatory pension provision. In the broader field of occupational pension provision, there is no legal obligation to adjust survivors' or disability pensions for inflation. The adjustment for price increases is then governed by the regulations of the pension institution.
The Federal Court considers that the administrative practice according to which the adjustment of survivors' and disability pensions that exceed the legal minimum is not mandatory as long as the total pension is higher than the OPA pension adjusted for price developments (the so-called…