Darran Fawcett
Partner
Discretionary Trusts
Discretionary trusts offer more flexibility and more power to trustees. They help you provide for certain people at certain times, reducing inheritance tax along the way.
Our Discretionary Trusts Services
Trusts are a way of managing wealth (in the form of cash, possessions, investments, life insurance, land, and/or property) for you, your family, and anyone else you want to benefit.
It's a legally binding document that dictates who can manage the trust, earn from it, and inherit it.
Discretionary trusts give more power to trustees than normal trusts, allowing them to make decisions about how much beneficiaries get, and when. All capital and income are distributed completely at their discretion.
Why choose Irwin Mitchell for this service?
A discretionary trust is useful when there’s uncertainty about beneficiaries' future needs. Some common scenarios are:
- A complex family situation – multiple beneficiaries, differing needs, potential conflicts of interest, etc
- A desire to protect assets from divorce settlements, creditors, or mismanagement by beneficiaries
- When someone due to inherit from you would owe a large amount of inheritance tax on the estate (splitting ownership between a spouse and a trust can discount the taxable value)
- When someone is due to inherit from you, but receiving the inheritance as cash instead of through a trust might stop certain benefits (e.g. disability or care home fees)
- Withholding gifts until certain points (e.g. until a beneficiary turns 18), or providing for future generations (e.g. grandchildren who haven't been born yet)
You can set one up while you are alive, or write it into your will to take effect after you die. If you set it up during your lifetime, remember it may still be liable for inheritance tax if you die within 7 years.
You can also write a detailed letter of guidance to help trustees make decisions the way you want them to.
Speak to our experts
We have the largest private client team in the UK, our team of experts are here to provide discreet legal advice to support you and your family.
Dealing with wills can be daunting. We help make things smoother.
Fill out our form, and you will get a call back within 24-48 hours.
Making an enquiry
We have several ways you can contact us, either by completing our online contact form, by phone, or using our live chat. If you start your journey online, here are the first steps to working together.
Complete our online formWe need a few details to understand your situation and the kind of support you need.
We’ll contact you by phoneOn the call our experts will ask you a few more questions to make sure we connect you with the right legal advice from our team.
We arrange a full appointmentYour next step is an in-depth appointment with a specialist solicitor to discuss how we could advise you.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can add specific people by name, or a group of people like ‘my grandchildren and their descendants’. You can also name organisations like charities, schools, arts institutions, or sports clubs.
A beneficiary can also be a trustee. It’s good practice to ensure there’s no conflict of interest between these roles, and that at least one trustee is a non-beneficiary (so they can make rational decisions with no financial interest).
Our commitment to you
Our experts always start by listening, so we understand what matters most from day one.- 01Clear legal guidance
You will always get straightforward, honest advice, with regular updates to keep you clear on the way forward.
- 02Specialist knowledge
A wide-ranging team of trusted specialists who understand what it takes to protect your future, your family or your business.
- 03Your needs first
Whether you’re navigating complex personal situations or business decisions, we take the time to understand your world and what’s at stake.
Why choose Irwin Mitchell for this service?
Our team are experts in all aspects of estate planning, as well as having teams of tax specialists and financial advisers. We also have a dedicated trust administration team who can both set up and manage trusts. We hold membership of many professional bodies in this area, such as:
STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners)
CIOT (Chartered Institute of Taxation)
CILEX (Chartered Institute of Legal Executives)
We work with these bodies to help shape the law in this fast-moving area. Our team also have experience working with international clients and high-net-worth clients. No matter where you're located or what your status is, our team can help.
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