Fleming & Rhoden can assist you with structuring your business or investments through discretionary, family or a specific purpose trusts.
Trusts can be used
- as a tax minimisation strategy;
- as a means of providing shared income for family members;
- to minimise the risk of creditors making a claim against your assets; and
- to place valuable assets out of the direct control of individuals at risk of making poor decisions that may affect a number of stakeholders involved.
One type of discretionary trust is a family trust. A trustee (frequently one of the family members) is elected to hold assets in their name for the benefit of a group of beneficiaries. Although one or more person can be elected as trustee, so to can a proprietary limited company. This is beneficial in terms of avoiding difficulty experienced in situations such as the death of a trustee, or in circumstances where a trustee is declared bankrupt.
Our lawyers can assist you with:
- Drafting trusts
- Reviewing trusts to ensure they comply with financial and trust-related legal requirements
- Advice for your accountant to make suitable arrangements
- Advice for structuring your trust in ways to minimise the chance of claims being made under family law or debt recovery proceedings.