Messages of condolence have been pouring in from the European pensions industry following the untimely passing of James Kavanagh, who was a well-known personality in the Irish pensions space.

James passed away on Friday 26th March following a period of illness.

James was the founder, chairman and managing director of Irish firm, Trustee Decisions, a specialist company providing independent guidance and support to employers and trustees of private and public pension schemes. A professional trustee and pensioneer trustee, he was also, among many other roles, chairman of the board of the Corporate Governance Association of Ireland (CGAI) and an active member of the Irish Association of Pension Funds (IAPF).

Making the announcement on LinkedIn, executive director of the firm, Jim Foley, who will be taking over the managing director role, described James as a “gentleman of the highest order who gave freely of his time, energy, enthusiasm and expertise”.

“Through his work with the IAPF, the Retirement Planning Council, the CGAI, The Royal Dublin Society and as a Peace Commissioner, James has made a very significant and lasting contribution to individuals and to Irish society,” he stated.

Speaking to European Pensions, Foley further described his colleague and friend as a “powerhouse of a man” who will be sadly missed by all who knew him.

“I also believe there are thousands of members of occupational pension schemes in Ireland who will probably never realise the positive impact that he has had on their future lives due to the integrity and professionalism he brought as a trustee and the standards he set,” Foley said.

In addition to his work across various bodies/associations, James also worked with LIA, a professional education and development association for those who work in all areas of the financial services industry in Ireland, working on the planning and development of LIA's Trustee Course (DC Pension Scheme Trustee Practices) a number of years ago. Foley commented: “He was an extremely capable educator/lecturer/trainer, being the first lecturer on this course. He very generously shared his vast knowledge and experience in trusteeship with students across Ireland in his usual passionate & enthusiastic way.”

IAPF CEO, Jerry Moriarty, commenting on the news, said: “James was a member of the Council of the IAPF from 2010 until 2014 and chaired our DC Committee from 2009 until 2014. He made a huge contribution, not only to the IAPF, but the whole pensions sector in Ireland. He will be greatly missed but fondly remembered.”

Others of James’ industry peers, commenting on LinkedIn, remembered him as a ‘pioneer of independence in the trustee space’, a ‘kind, noble and accomplished man’, ‘a pensions industry stalwart’ and someone who ‘had the interests of the pension member at heart’.

James had over 25 years of experience in advising trustee boards across a broad range of schemes. He began his career with what is now Aon, later holding senior roles at Ernst & Young and Willis Towers Watson.

He was chairman of CGAI and during 2019 was appointed to advise the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport Tourism and Sport; whilst in 2017 was appointed to a Statutory Consultative Panel on the Governance of Charitable Organisations by the Charities Regulator.

James was a member of the European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI), the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN), the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), the Association of Pension Lawyers in Ireland (APLI), the Institute of Directors (IOD) and the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA).

He served as a board member of the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) Foundation Board and Governance Committee and was a former Board of Management Member of Holy Faith Secondary School Clontarf, Dublin. In 2017, he was appointed to a Statutory Consultative Panel on the Governance of Charitable Organisations by the Charities Regulator and in 2013 was appointed to the Office of Peace Commissioner by Alan Shatter, Minister for Justice.

James was well known to the team at European Pensions and we send our deepest sympathies to his family.

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