Trusts
A Trust is a way of protecting your assets for the future. To form a Trust a person (known as a Settlor) places assets under the control of a person (known as the Trustee), for the benefit of another person or people (known as the Beneficiaries) or for a specified purpose (such as education).
One of the main benefits of a Trust is that they provide flexibility. For example, rather than simply gifting your children a certain amount of money, which they may fritter away, you could put the money in a Trust and make provisions in the Trust Deed to pay them the interest on the capital until they reach a certain age of maturity.
The Trustee must deal with the asset in the manner set out in the Trust Deed. Trusts can be:
- Fixed – this is where the beneficiaries and their share of the assets are decided when the trust is created.
- Discretionary – the Trust Deed gives the Trustees discretion as to who may benefit from the trust and what their proportional share will be.
Why would I want to create a Trust?
- To keep property such as a family farm or business within the family.
- To manage tax liability on assets (this needs to be managed carefully, mistakes can be costly!).
- To put money aside for a specific purpose such as university education or property purchases for future generations.
- To protect assets such as the family home from being used for debt collection.
What is a Charitable Trust?
A Charitable Trust is set up for the express purpose of operating for a charitable purpose. Money donated to the charitable trust for the purpose of beneficiaries is exempt from most forms of tax.
How we can help you set up your Trust
At Bennett Oakley Solicitors our lawyers have many years experience setting up and administering often large, complex trusts for many different types of individuals and organisations. Although trust law can involved a lot of legal jargon we will take the time to ensure that you fully understand the process so you can make the best decisions in relation to your interests.
