TRUST eSPEAKING ARTICLES
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Issue 27 – Spring 2018
Do you still need a trust, or should you bring it to an end? Also, what can be done if your Will is invalid. Read more …
Issue 26 – Autumn 2018
When your spouse or partner dies you need to choose to take what you have been left in their Will, if anything (Option B), or to make a claim against their estate (Option A). Read more …
Issue 25 – Spring 2017
The proposed new trusts legislation has started its path through the House. Read more …
Issue 24 – Autumn 2017
Most owners want to ensure their business will continue after they have died. Often they want their family to be able to carry on the business. Read more …
Issue 23 – Spring 2016
The extent of a trustee’s obligation to provide information to beneficiaries has been a continuing source of frustration for trustees. Read more …
Issue 22 – Autumn 2016
With the growth of multiple relationships and blended families many couples are having to consider ways to ringfence assets and protect inheritances. Read more …
Issue 21 – Spring 2015
If you set up your trust some years ago, it may be time to consider whether the trustees you appointed are still right for the role. Read more …
Issue 20 – Summer 2015
Ten years ago the idea of protecting your digital assets after your death, or if you lost mental capacity, would have been regarded as absurd. Many of us now regard this as critical. However, there’s very little guidance available on how best to ensure these assets are identified and dealt with in these situations. Read more …
Issue 19 – Spring 2014
“Dying without a will? Messy, expensive and time-consuming.” Read more …
Issue 18 – Autumn 2014
“The Pike River Mine tragedy has changed the way in which health and saftey is thought about. This, and other legislative changes, are likely to have major effects for trustees in the future. If your trust owns any type of business or farm, the trustees need to start thinking more about their responsibilties.” Read More …
Issue 17 – Spring 2013
“There are a number of common assumptions made about access to a person’s Will and what happens after the Will-maker has died.” Read More …
Issue 16 – Autumn 2013
“It was very common in the 1990s for New Zealanders to set up discretionary family trusts in the hope that by putting assets in the name of a trust, they could qualify for resthome subsidies in the event that they were required to go into rest home care. This certainly worked for a number of years. Things have changed, however, and this article looks at a recent case that challenged that proposition.” Read More …
Issue 15 – Spring 2012
“If you are both trustee and beneficiary of a family trust, it’s important for you to know when you are allowed to act selfishly (for your own benefit) and when you must act selflessly (for the benefit of others)” Read More …
Issue 14 – Autumn 2012
“One of the most important duties of a trustee is to act totally in the interests of the trust beneficiaries. Divided loyalties or a conflict of interest can be enough for a trustee to be removed.” Read more …
Issue 13 – Spring 2011
With the abolition of gift duty from 1 October 2011 the first thought for most people who have a family trust would be “Let’s give it all away”. Read more …
Issue 12- Autumn 2011
The government has announced it will abolish gift duty from 1 October 2011 citing the cost of gift duty compliance. Read more …
Issue 11 – Spring 2010
The Wills Act 2007, which came into force on 1 November 2007, has made some significant changes to how Wills are corrected in New Zealand. Read more …
Issue 10 – Autumn 2010
As a general rule the 50/50 split provisions of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 do not apply to assets held in a family trust. This creates real problems when a couple separate; one or both may be denied access to trust assets. Read more …
E-Flash May 2010
In the lead-up to the 2010 Budget delivered on 20 May, some commentators believed that trusts, and the way that trusts operate, may be targeted. Read more …
OTHER ARTICLES
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Wills Act 2007 – Changes and Current Issues
The new Wills Act 2007 (the “Act”) came into force on 1 November 2007. It replaced the old 1837 Wills Act which was a United Kingdom statute and which had been amended numerous times between 1852 and 2005. Two of the most significant changes are: Read more …
Trusts and Relationship Property in New Zealand
An examination of the interaction between trusts and relationship property in New Zealand looking at key legislative provisions, sham and alter ego arguments, bundles of rights and the possible effects of the ongoing review of the law of trusts by the New Zealand Law Commission. Read more …
Property (Relationships) Act 1976 Election Process
Section 61 of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 (the “PRA”) allows the surviving partner or spouse to choose either option A or option B. Option A is to elect to make an application under the PRA for a division of relationship property. Option B is as follows: Read more …
Gifts to Charity – Some Pitfalls
The law relating to charities has a long and unique history. Despite legislative changes the Courts have continued to refer back to the eclectic list in the preamble to the Charitable Uses Act 1601 for the definition of the term “charity”. Read more …
Fineprint Special September 2011
Abolition of gift duty means a re-think of the role of a trust, how a trust is used and what implications there may be for you, your family and also your trust. Read more …
Abstract from Greg Kelly’s Master’s Thesis
In this thesis I review New Zealand’s present inheritance laws which are characterised by: Read more …