However, no other wealth-holding vehicle matches the flexibility of the trust for dealing with changes in circumstances. New beneficiaries can be added and others excluded in ways that are, if not impossible, then at least cumbersome within a corporate structure. Capital can be released to one beneficiary, for school or university fees, or to purchase a property, without the need for others to receive identical distributions. Assets are less exposed to the predations of divorce and other life events.
With all their advantages for succession planning, it remains the case that trusts, in combination with FICs or otherwise, should be regarded as a vital tool in any wealth advisor’s armoury.
About Guy Abrahams, Partner, Private Client, Forsters.
Guy’s clients include entrepreneurs, international families, private charities and the owners of landed estates. He often acts as executor or as a trustee of family settlements.
His advice for clients based in the UK mainly concerns how to manage the transfer of assets from one generation to the next, often using trusts or corporate vehicles to mitigate capital taxes. He has extensive experience in the use of tax reliefs for businesses. His advice for international clients includes pre-arrival planning, and the use of holding structures to protect assets and to prevent unnecessary exposure to tax in the UK. Guy trained at Wedlake Bell and moved to Forsters in 2009. He was made a partner in 2017.
