Expertise
Geoff advises UK and international high net worth individuals, trustees and companies on UK and cross-border tax and related issues including:
- Wealth and succession planning, including Wills and trusts
- Interaction between common and civil law and between US and UK law
- Residence, domicile, and remittance basis taxation
- Relocating to and from the UK
- Funding UK expenditure from non-UK sources tax-efficiently
- Structuring tax efficient UK inward investment, especially in real estate
- Offshore trusts, pensions and remuneration and reward structures
- Administering complex UK and cross-border estates
- Complying with UK tax and AML legislation, UK Trust Register and UK Overseas Entities Register
Geoff uses his many years of experience to help his colleagues, clients and their other professional advisors navigate through the UK’s tax legislation, now reckoned as the world’s longest (and certainly one of the most complex).
As well as advising on (and creating) new trust and other structures, Geoff helps existing ones adapt to changes in tax and other circumstances and where they have reached the end of their useful life, assists with a tax-efficient winding-up.
Geoff now combines advising clients with being a professional support lawyer for his colleagues.
Experience
- Advising the trustee of a Jersey trust holding UK real estate via a Jersey company on the UK tax issues resulting from the death of the settlor and life tenant, including on funding inheritance tax due, conferring benefits to other beneficiaries and on restructuring.
- Advising a US entrepreneur on UK tax issues on relocating with his family to the UK and purchasing a new family home in London as well as liaising with his US advisors and family office.
- Advising the trustee and settlor of several connected Jersey trusts, including on restructuring to mitigate UK tax on the settlor returning to the UK and becoming UK tax resident and domiciled and on a financial divorce-law claim by the former spouse of a beneficiary.
- Advising the US settlors of a US “grantor trust” owning a UK residential property on its UK trust and tax law status and on steps to mitigate UK tax exposure.
- Advising a nominee company owning a private equity fund’s assets on its obligations to register on the UK Trust Register and assisting with registration.
- Advising a Jersey trustee of a complex structure on who its registerable beneficial owners were for the purposes of the Register of Overseas Entities.