trustees
A Letter of Wishes complements your Will and should be seen as a guide rather than a set of binding instructions. This document provides additional information on personal matters to be considered after your death, such as your preferences for
With a properly structured business assurance agreement, the proceeds from such a policy are exempt from estate duty in your estate. Unlike other assets, business assurance policy proceeds are not considered part of the deceased estate's deemed property, offering a
A trust can be useful for securing assets such as a family farm or holiday home for future generations, safeguarding against potential alienation or sale. In such circumstances, the trust serves as a valuable succession planning tool by ensuring that
Bewind trusts are created as trading vehicles and provide trustees with limited liability as well as certain tax benefits for beneficiaries. In a bewind trust, the trust founder sets up the trust in such a way that the assets and
In December 2022, there were further stringent amendments made to the Trust Property Control Act, including a change in the trustees reporting and the introduction of a new definition of ‘beneficial owner’.
Another important factor when it comes to planning for complex family structures is the issue of retirement fund beneficiary nomination. In the case of retirement funds, bear in mind that your beneficiary nomination is merely a guide to the fund
If you intend setting up a trust, do not underestimate the importance of choosing appropriately skilled trustees to manage the trust assets, keeping in mind that the job a trustee is an onerous one that should not be taken lightly.
Once the assets are transferred into the trust, they no longer belong to the trust founder and the trustees are required to take over full control of the assets and ensure that they are managed to achieve the best outcomes
As a word of caution, if your will is found to be invalid, for whatever reason, no testamentary trust can be formed which can result in your beneficiaries being financially prejudiced.
While alter-ego trusts may be valid, ‘sham’ trusts fail to meet the requirements for validity in that they are essentially fake trusts designed to deceive others. As such, the test for determining whether a trust is a sham one is
