The Seven Key Aspects of Testamentary Trusts

In recent years, the need for effective structuring of business and personal assets has been brought into sharp focus for high net worth individuals and business owners.

Fundamental changes in the law, the vast amounts of wealth accumulated within superannuation funds and the shortening of both business and personal relationships have necessitated the evolution of estate planning structuring beyond traditional formats.

Asset protection strategies and the use of testamentary trusts are important issues to consider in estate planning, particularly where potential beneficiaries are in professional practice occupations or in business, or where there is a risk that a personal relationship of a beneficiary might degenerate in the future. Potential beneficiaries that fall into any of these ‘at risk’ categories will be exposed to losing assets, unless appropriate structures are put in place.

The Seven key aspects of Testamentary Trusts is a comprehensive guide to testamentary trusts and addresses numerous topics including:

• testamentary trusts and bankruptcy
• testamentary trusts and the family court
• protective trusts, other types of special testamentary trusts and practical considerations for bespoke testamentary trusts
• complex forms of testamentary trusts
• creative uses of testamentary trusts
• the taxation of testamentary trusts– including all aspects of the excepted trust income rules and the changes first announced by the federal government in 2018.