Do you understand how your trust works? How it fits in within your overall Tax and Business planning? Who will have control of your trust when you die? Will your children be looked after? Would your trust survive a legal challenge? These are all important and relevant questions. While Trusts can be a useful and important tool in asset planning; unfortunately many Trusts are not formed or administered properly exposing the trustees to substantial personal risk.
Do you wish to preserve your children's inheritance and protect against their partner's claiming under the Relationship Property Act?
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Auckland Legal are Trust specialists. We are able to supplement and work with your current professional advisors while providing Specialist Trust services.
Who are the trustees of your trust and why did you choose them? One of the most important decisions you'll face when establishing your trust is the selection of your trustees. The trustee is responsible for distributing income and principal to the beneficiaries of the trust according to the terms specified by you in the trust deed. Is one of your trustees a limited liability company? If not, why not? Consider the following benefits of having a company trustee:
- Trust assets must generally be held in the trustee's name(s). Any change of trustee will require the transferring of the titles to all assets (e.g. real estate, shares, bank accounts, etc.). The same administrative hassle and expense applies when a trustee dies, retires or is removed. In contrast, all that is required where a company trustee has been appointed is a change of directorship. The legal title to all the assets remains vested in the company which continues to act as trustee. A company trustee will save considerable time and effort.
- If an individual trustee suffers any liability, the trustee's personal assets may be exposed. As companies are subject to limited liability a corporate trustee may remove the risk that an individual trustee suffers.
If you already have a Trust we offer a comprehensive Trust Review to identify any risks or gaps in your Trust administration and structure. The Trust Review will identify any remedial work that may be required.
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