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Trust deeds can be an effective means of managing family wealth and minimising tax liabilities but, as a High Court decision strikingly showed, any mistakes in their drafting can have serious repercussions for generations to come. The case concerned a family trust with substantial assets that was created in the 1930s by a woman in contemplation of her son's marriage. It had been amended more than once over the years, most recently by a deed of appointment which created a sub-fund for the benefit of an unmarried male member of...

If you are facing an investigation by the tax authorities, your very first step should be to seek professional advice. One taxpayer who sadly chose not to take that course, instead burying his head in the sand, narrowly escaped a six-figure back-tax bill. Following an enquiry, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) formed the view that the man had been trading in second-hand cars for years without declaring his profits for Income Tax purposes. Assessments were raised in respect of a 12-year period and, after late payment penalties were added, his...

Public confidence in the civil justice system would collapse if court orders were not rigorously enforced – however agonising complying with them may be. The point was made by a case in which a divorcee who refused to move out of her home of 25 years came within an ace of being sent to prison for her defiance. Following lengthy and bitter divorce proceedings, the woman had been ordered to quit the home where she brought up her children so that it could be sold and the proceeds divided between...

When a property development involving a building that is listed or in a conservation area is undertaken, it is reasonable for the contractor employed to do the work to assume that the employer has used due diligence to obtain the necessary planning consents. In a recent case, a contractor was retained to undertake extensive works to a building, including the construction of a basement-level swimming pool. The building is in a conservation area and the works involved an element of demolition of the existing building, which in turn meant that...