The Chief Minister's Department has recently issued a consultation paper on proposed changes to the Trusts (Jersey) Law 1984 ("Trusts Law"). The consultation paper covers a number of areas where amendments to the Trusts Law might be considered.
These include such areas as the need for a beneficiary at all times during the existence of a trust and the rights of beneficiaries to information; and trustee indemnity provisions on retirement. The consultation paper also makes reference to Jersey’s quasi-forced heirship rules known as légitime. The consultation paper highlights concerns raised that high net worth individuals moving to Jersey have been reluctant to set up trust structures here due to this quasi-forced heirship rule, and have therefore used competitor jurisdictions instead.
The consultation paper can be viewed by clicking here and submissions must be received by 4 July 2016.