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Previous blogs have talked about the dangers of failing to differentiate between trust and the trust’s settlor (or some other “related” party). This is also the case when it comes to recognising who is entitled to deductions for trust expenditure. A TRA (Taxation Review Authority) decision, since upheld on appeal to the High Court (see Brown … Continue reading
It has been a long time in the making. Today (11 September) the Law Commission’s Report, Review of the Law of Trusts: A Trusts Act for New Zealand, was tabled in Parliament. The Report recommends the introduction of a new Trusts Act to replace the current Trustee Act 1956. The proposed new Trusts Act will be … Continue reading
New auditing and review requirements have been announced that will apply to charities with annual exenditure of $500,000 or more. Currently all registered charities are required to attach financial statements to their annual returns. New requirements announced this week will provide that charities with annual expenditure of $500,000 or more will need to have their financial statements reviewed … Continue reading
The decision in Roberts v Francis further highlights the need to respond to beneficiaries’ information requests in a timely fashion. The background facts can be summarised as follows: Dr Roberts died intestate His wife obtained letters of administration The beneficiairies of his estate, as determined by the Administration Act were his wife and his children … Continue reading
Commentators and advisers have been divided regarding whether or not gifts made by couples are aggregated for residential care subsidy purposes. A decision by the High Court that gifts are aggregated, has now been up-held by the Court of Appeal. So what does this mean? Simply, for a person with a spouse or partner, gifts … Continue reading
The default decisioin making position with a trust is that trustee decisions must be unanimous unless there is a provision in the deed of trust that specifically permits majority decisions. Where discretionary trusts permit majority decision making, trustees can find themselves liable for decisions that they were not party to. However, where unanimity is required … Continue reading
Or am I? The unsuccessful summary judgment application in Herron v Wallace highlights the importance of being able to evidence appointment as trustee. In this case the plaintiff was seeking to recover over $2.5m under a deed of settlement and a deed of acknowledgment of debt. Due to the plaintiff’s intervening bankruptcy it was essential … Continue reading
An extraordinary number of wills seem to be being put to the court for correction of late. In the recent case of Re Estate Valerie Cliff Bryce a will containing a series of clerical and arithmetic errors was corrected by order of the court. However, the case serves to highlight concern over the number of … Continue reading
I’ve taken some liberties with the heading, the couple in question may not yet be divorced. They are separated. In a sequel to a previous blog regarding litigation to determine whether a $1.22 m loan was in fact a gift the High Court has determined that the sum in question was in fact a loan. Background … Continue reading
Making a will is an important rite of passage into adulthood. Over time, a person’s will may be up-dated to reflect changing cirucmstances or allegiances. Some people write their own wills, more commonly a lawyer is engaged to draft the will. The difficulty with a will of course is that by its very nature it is only operative when the … Continue reading
Matters of Trust 