Trusteeship and Management of Trusts

We are specialist Estate Planning solicitors within Croydon and Central London and have a strong reputation in assisting clients with Trust Administration and Management. We offer competitive pricing and offer a bespoke estate planning service to all our clients.

Becoming a trustee can be quite a big task and we understand that taking on a responsibility like this can feel daunting.

What being a Trustee Involves

Along with the identity of those who may benefit from the trust (the ‘beneficiaries’) and the trust assets, the law expects you to have a knowledge of the powers and duties given to you in the trust itself and under the law. To add more to your plate, being a trustee also involves repeating responsibilities, such as the need to file trust tax returns, hold trustees’ meetings and take active steps for any trust investments. We recognise that, even with the best will in the world, all of this can be a lot to manage.

Whether you are looking for help with practical things such as assistance in completing trust tax returns, or want guidance in your duties as a trustee, we are happy to steer you through the minefield of things you need to do as a trustee. We manage trusts of almost all shapes and sizes and have the experience needed to deal with whatever problem or question you have.

An outline of Trustee Duties

• As Trustees are personally chosen to act and therefore must act in this capacity, they are prohibited from delegating someone else to carry out their duties for them.
• Trustees must act unanimously unless the Trust Deed provides otherwise.
• The trustees have a duty to protect the assets of the trust and to ensure that the trust assets are properly invested.
• The trustees have a legal duty to obtain proper advice as to where to invest and keep such investments under regular review as part of the compliance with the legislation. The type of investment will sometimes be limited by the type of trust being dealt with.
• The legislation also requires that the trustees have a regularly reviewed policy statement where they provide their attitude to investment and risk to a professional advisor.

It is especially important to keep full accounts for the trust, not only to ease the completion of any annual tax return, but also to be able to produce to the beneficiaries upon request.

Trustees are obliged to register a trust upon HMRC’s Trusts Registration Service by 31 January after the end of the tax year when tax falls due.

Support from our Trusts Team

Our dedicated Trusts Officer can also offer whatever level of support you need: whether that’s giving advice on one or two issues, or if you would like us to assume responsibility for running the trust as a whole. Whatever you want, we’d be delighted to walk you through the process of the administration of a trust.

How Barnes Harrild & Dyer Solicitors can help

We advise you on:

• the administration of family trusts
• trustees’ powers and duties
• trust tax regimes
• trust tax returns

The Inheritance tax and capital gains tax rules relating to trusts are complex and specialist advice is recommended to understand the issues. Our expert Wills, Trusts and Wealth Management lawyers are able to provide practical and effective advice.

For further information and a free telephone consultation, call our Central London or Croydon offices today on 0344 444 8216. Alternatively, reach out to us via the blue contact boxes at the top of this page, and speak to a senior lawyer.