International Private Client Forum 2018 Conference Programme
Day One: Thursday 15 November
12.00 Welcome Lunch
13:15 Welcome from Butterfield
Paul Hodgson, Butterfield Trust, Guernsey
13.20 Andiamo! Mastering Globalisation
Basil Zirinis, Sullivan & Cromwell, UK and USA
Clare Maurice, Maurice Turnor Gardner, UK
13:40 Globalisation; The Foundation of The International Private Client World
Decades of globalisation underpin the growth of the international private client arena. Family businesses have expanded around the world and various generations of family members have moved with those businesses. This is especially the case with the current youngest generation, who often live in multiple jurisdictions, travel constantly, and require advice crossing many borders. Our clients’ highly mobile lifestyles require advisers with a truly global perspective. Advisers must understand and balance the often conflicting legal and cultural concerns in these multiple jurisdictions, while at the same time helping clients adjust to the global spread of standardized tax and transparency regulation. Globalisation of families and their businesses also means that clients and their assets are increasingly located in unstable, sometimes dangerous, jurisdictions. Have we evolved quickly enough as international advisers, and what are the key areas in which we must adapt?
Piers Barclay, Macfarlanes, UK
Paul Hodgson, Butterfield Trust, Guernsey
Thelma Kwan, Thelma TM Kwan, Hong Kong
Raul-Angelo Papotti, Chiomenti, Italy
Wendy Walton, BDO, UK
14:30 Where to stay - The Villa d'Este or The Ritz-Carlton, Riyadh?
When an extraordinary, unexpected event occurs, shock and surprise rapidly give way to practical and technical challenges. As a trustee, what can be done if the Protector and principal beneficiaries are incommunicado, how can the trust assets be protected, and what is to be done if requests for distributions are made under what appears to be duress? As a lawyer or other adviser, how do you take instructions, from whom, and are they meaningful? How does one address AML/KYC issues? What practical steps can one take in relation to all of the various trusts, foundations, companies and personal assets owned by the family? We will explore how to plan for the unexpected, and consider whether everything we all think we know about drafting, establishing and administering trusts is really sufficient to deal with a major crisis.
Arabella Murphy, Maurice Turnor Gardner, UK
Jonathan Speck, Mourant Ozannes, Jersey
Dan Lindley, Northern Trust, USA
15:10 Coffee break
15:30 International Incompetence
What are the differing approaches to questions of capacity around the world. The test for legal capacity depends on the issue: capacity to make a contract; to make a will; to marry. In an international context, further complications arise, not only because the legal systems are different, but also because the cultural expectations vary. Negotiating these issues calls for sensitivity as well as legal expertise.
Using a case-study as a framework, the panellists will share their experiences of real-life problems. Their remit will adopt the mission statement of the BBC: “To inform, educate, and entertain”.
Gilead Cooper QC, Wilberforce Chambers, UK
Philippe Pulfer, Walder Wyss, Switzerland
Lester Huang, PC Woo & Co, Hong Kong
16:10
Lester Huang, PC Woo & Co, Hong Kong
16:10
Masterpiece Or Massive Fraud? Art For The Uninitiated
This panel focuses on the challenges for clients and their advisors in relation to art, including pitfalls such as lack of provenance, authenticity, and valuation, with reference to recent cases.
Alexander Jolles, Schellenberg Wittmer, Switzerland
Simon Fitzpatrick, Boodle Hatfield, UK
17:00 Breakout Discussions:
Our breakout sessions give delegates the chance to examine in greater detail topics of specific interest in a roundtable discussion setting.
(A) Exits And Entrances: Excluding And Adding BeneficiariesNever before have beneficiaries been more frustrated, litigious and disgruntled. Often they consider fiduciaries their nemesis, wasting “their” money and mismanaging “their” assets. What if the fiduciaries exercise their discretion to exclude beneficiaries? Adding and excluding beneficiaries in a way that will be acceptable to all stakeholders may be hard, but sometimes an inevitable task. What is the role of protectors? This breakout will call all attendees to share their experience and views, both from a legal and practical perspective, both under common and civil law.Johannes Gasser, Gasser Partner Rechtsanwälte, Liechtenstein
Carlos de Serpa Pimental, Appleby, Cayman Islands(B) The Evolution Of The Family OfficeSingle Family Offices are becoming an increasingly popular option for wealthy families and entrepreneurs to manage their assets. Clients expect their professional advisors to have a broad awareness of how a professionally run Family Office should be structured and guide them at a high-level on key governance, legal and tax matters. This session will discuss key trends in the Single Family Office space, including the increasing professionalisation of SFOs, executive incentivisation, investment capabilities, reputation management and family interaction. Particularly, we consider how effective collaboration between professional advisers plays a critical role in building success in each of these areas.
David Bowen, Deloitte, UK
Paula Higgleton, Deloitte, UK(C) Alternatives To Foundations And Trusts, Including PartnershipsCan partnerships work as trust or will substitutes? Will this alleviate regulatory filings? What is the impact of partnership interests extinguishing upon death instead of passing to another owner? What are the strategic benefits to these alternatives?Sonia Velasco, Cuatrecasas, SpainArnold van der Smeede, Arcagna, The Netherlands
(D) Litigation Update
Richard Wilson QC, Serle Court, UK
Jeffrey P. Elkinson, Conyers Dill & Pearman, Bermuda
Jeremy Kosky, Clifford Chance, UK
18:00 Close of Day One Sessions
19.00 Welcome Drinks Reception
19.45 Villa d’Este Dinner
Day Two: Friday 16 November
09:00 Welcome Comments from the Co-Chairs
Basil Zirinis, Sullivan & Cromwell, UK and USA
Clare Maurice, Maurice Turnor Gardner, UK
09.10 Butterfield Keynote
Daniel A. D’Aniello, Co-Founder, Chairman Emeritus, The Carlyle Group, USA
Daniel A. D’Aniello, Co-Founder, Chairman Emeritus, The Carlyle Group, USA
09:40 The Criminalisation Of Tax Investigations And Prosecutions
Tax authorities are increasingly attacking and disregarding corporate and trust structures. Exchange of information mechanisms have fueled this trend. Are high tax jurisdictions using criminal proceedings to increase their leverage in tax investigations? What are the increased risks for fiduciaries and advisors in creating and administering such structures? Where does the obligation to report lie?
Marco Cerrato, Maisto e Associati, Italy
Elspeth Talbot Rice QC, XXIV Old Buildings, UK (moderator)
Andreas Richter, Pöllath + Partners, Germany
Keith Robinson, Carey Olsen, Bermuda Elspeth Talbot Rice QC, XXIV Old Buildings, UK (moderator)
10:30 Coffee break
11:00 When Investigative Journalists Target a Client – Anticipating, Avoiding And Responding
The Paradise Papers is another indication of the rising importance of global collaboration for investigative journalism, which will continue to strengthen. How should you act and advise your clients to act when you or your client is the target of a media investigation? This scenario based session will highlight a working framework from all parties.
Paddy Harverson, Milltown Partners, UK
Jimmy Burns, author, journalist and former member of the Financial Times investigations team, UK
Jenny Afia, Schillings, UK
Basil Zirinis, Sullivan & Cromwell, UK/USA (moderator)
11:45 How transparency will change our world
We used to recoil at government monitoring and data collection on private citizens, terming it “surveillance”. Public attitudes have changed, and we now see “transparency” as essential to rooting out tax and AML mischief, particularly in the cross border context. CRS, FATCA, central/public registers and the like are transforming the relationship between citizens and the state- and with other citizens- globally. Growing “big data” analytical capability will amplify the impact. What should we be telling clients now to prepare for the transparent future ahead?
Richard Hay, Stikeman Elliott, UK
Lisa Springate, Jersey Finance, Jersey
12:30 Interactive Focus Groups
Our break-out sessions give delegates the chance to examine in greater detail topics of specific interest in a roundtable discussion setting.
(A) The Demands Of The Russian Market
Geographically and culturally vast, how should the Russian market be approached?
Maxim Alekseyev, ALRUD, Russia(B)The Grand Tour Of EuropeBeatrice Puoti, Burges Salmon, UK
Anton Seatter, Sanne Group, UK
(C) US Tax Reform: Its Impact On International Families And StructuresOn December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was enacted, accomplishing far-reaching US tax reform. For the international family, what still works and what does not?Megan Worrell, Duane Morris, USACharles Barragato, BDO, USA
(D) The Latin American PerspectiveLatin American clients are facing increasing challenges that influence succession and tax planning. Key questions include:- How to restructure after a tax amnesty?- What fiduciary structures are available in light of local legislation?- What options are there for tax deferral, following amnesties and with increased transparency?- How to mitigate political risk for clients living and investing in Latin America?Sergio Michelsen Jaramillo, Brigard & Urrutia, ColombiaAlessandro Amadeu da Fonseca, Mattos Filho, Brazil
13.30 Lunch
14.30 Leisure Activities
The Forum is not just about the content you receive in the formal sessions, but the crucial piece of information that you pick up whilst enjoying one of a choice of leisure activities.
19.00 Champagne Reception
19.45 Villa D’Este Gala Dinner
Day Three: Saturday 17 November
10.30 The Bloody Mary Morning
Our forum closes with a lively session inviting all to participate.
Tina Wüstemann, Bär & Karrer, Switzerland
Shân Warnock-Smith QC, 5 Stone Buildings, UK
Rachael Reynolds, Ogier, Cayman Islands
Shân Warnock-Smith QC, 5 Stone Buildings, UK
Rachael Reynolds, Ogier, Cayman Islands
12.00 Closing Comments and Lunch
