The Importance of Considering all Risks and Benefits

Overview

Trusts are widely considered to be effective planning vehicles that provide several benefits. Considering legislative changes in recent years and court judgments impacting trust law, it is now imperative to consider all the legal and administrative risks affecting trusts. 

In this comprehensive trust series, we will provide a full perspective on the critical legal and governance aspects to be considered by the various parties involved in trusts: The donors, beneficiaries, trustees, financial planners, tax advisors and accountants.

This Trusts Beyond 2021 series consists of four parts (each webinar can be attended independently):

Webinar 1: Trusts: Get the Basics Right

Webinar 2: Trusts: Important Short and Long-Term Risks and Benefits

Webinar 3: Risks for Trustees and Tax Practitioners in Trust Administration

Webinar 4: Specific Tax Risks Related to Trusts

Webinar series content

Trusts: Get the Basics Right (Part 1) – 25 October 2021

Presented by Prof Walter Geach

What are the consequences for trustees and beneficiaries?

• How can a trust be used as a planning tool?
• Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) and Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) on trusts.
• Trusts vs usufructs.
• Acquisition of fixed property: Structuring the transaction in a trust versus company (cost versus benefit).
• Trusts: Planning for estate duty and asset protection for future generations.
• Business trusts.
• Special trusts.
• B-BBEE trusts.
• How can a trust be terminated if no longer advantageous?
  • Process to be followed.
  • Beneficiaries’ rights and responsibilities.
  • Trustees’ rights.
  • Consequences for donors.
  • Tax consequences on terminating a trust.
• What are the section 7C considerations that must be considered?

Click here to register for this session.

Trusts: Important Short and Long-Term Risks and Benefits (Part 2) – 9 November 2021

Presented by Prof Walter Geach

• What are the practical issues that arise when a trust is formed and when assets are put into the trust?
  • Consequences when the initial donation is not made.
  • Documentation required when assets are subsequently put into a trust.
  • Donations or loans? Risks and benefits associated with each.
• Contracts: When are contracts involving a trust void?
• How important is it to identify and properly describe beneficiaries?
  • The risks attached to a testamentary trust.
  • Vested rights vs discretionary rights: Risks and benefits of each.
• What practical issues arise from amendments to a trust?
  • When are amendments invalid?
  • How can a Trust Deed be amended? 
• • Amendment in terms of Law of Contract.
  • Amendment in terms of the Trust Deed.
  • Master’s Directive on Deed of Amendments.
• What are the inescapable consequences when there is a valid trust?
• Sham trust vs alter ego trust:
  • The difference between a sham trust and a alter ego trust.
  • Pointers to avoid an alter ego/sham.

Click here to register for this session.

Risks for Trustees and Tax Practitioners in Trust Administration (Part 3) – 11 November 2021

Presented by Tamara Wallis and Karen Eckley

• General trust administration: What is required?
  • Taking decisions: Resolutions, statutory approvals that must be in place.
  • Reliance on advice.
  • Decisions taken, i.e., signing off AFS without all trustee’s approval.
  • Bank accounts movements.
  • Movements in journals without proper resolutions.
• What are the practical issues relating to trustees?
  • Duties and responsibilities.
  • Accountant acting as independent trustee: Risks and liability considerations.
  • Compliance requirements and documents to be maintained.
  • Dealing with conflict interpreting a trust deed.
  • Meetings of trustees and notice thereof.
  • Who can remove a trustee?
  • Alternate trustees and proxies: Are these legally possible?
  • Importance of timeous and valid trustee resolutions.
  • Personal liability for tax debts of the trust.

Click here to register for this session.

Specific Tax Risks Related to Trusts (Part 4) – 1 December 2021

Presented by Carmen Westermeyer

What tax risk areas are relevant to trusts and how can it be mitigated?

• Tax considerations of income retained in a trust.
• Apportionment of trust revenue and expenses for tax purposes.
• Tax considerations of income distributed to beneficiaries.
• Attribution of income and capital.
• Section 7C complications.
• Tax considerations of offshore trusts.
• Tax considerations for non-resident beneficiaries.

Click here to register for this session.

Who should attend?

Tax practitioners, tax managers, financial managers

Presenters

Prof Walter Geach 

Senior Professor, Graduate School of Business, University of KwaZulu-Natal, and Advocate of the High Court of South Africa
BA LLB, MCom, CTA CA(SA)

Prof Geach specialises in taxation, corporate law, trusts, financial accounting, and financial planning, and he is a business consultant and is also a non-executive director of Grindrod Limited. Prof Geach regularly presents seminars throughout South Africa on a wide variety of topics for several professional and business organisations.

He is author of Guide to the Close Corporations Act, Handbook for Executors, Trustees and Curators, Guide to the Companies Act, Capital Gains Tax in South Africa: The Essential Guide, and further co-authored The Financial Advisers Development Series, South African Corporate Business Administration, The South African Financial Planning Handbook, Trusts: Law and Practice and Companies and other business structures.

Tamara Wallis and Karen Eckley

Executive Directors, Trustees for the Future

Tamara and Karen have a combined industry experience that spans over 36 years and have specialised knowledge and experience in the following:

• Tax matters and how to make tax-effective decisions as trustees.
• Conflict resolution strategy and group restructuring.
• Risk insurance solutions for beneficiaries and trustees.
• Business entities and how they fit in with trusts.
• Estate planning and wills and how that fits in with trusts.
• Administration of trusts and all developments in trust law and relevant case law.

Tamara

• BCom (Accounting), LLB, Master of Laws – Estate Planning.
• Postgraduate Diploma in Financial Planning.
• CGISA International Qualifying Board Examination (Chartered Secretary Route).

Karen

• Bachelor of Commerce in Law; H.E.D.
• Postgraduate Diploma in Estate and Financial Planning.
• Advanced Postgraduate Diploma in Financial Planning.

Carmen Westermeyer

BCom(Honours Accounting) [UND] CA(SA)
 
Carmen Westermeyer graduated in 2001 from the University of Natal, Durban (now UKZN), with a BCom Honours degree in Accounting and completed her articles with PwC in 2004. She has been a member of SAICA since then.

Carmen stayed with PwC for a year as Assistant Manager, venturing into the world of commerce in 2006. In 2008, she was appointed as a lecturer at UKZN and coordinated the Taxation 300 course until December 2010. From 1 January 2010, Carmen took over the role of Academic Leader for the Taxation Department, as well as the coordination of the Postgraduate Taxation Programme. During her time as Academic Leader she had numerous opportunities to liase with SAICA on issues relating to the ITC, as well as being a member of the Tax Committee.

In December 2012 she started running ad hoc training courses for members of the profession. From December 2013, she moved into commercial training and consulting on a full-time basis. She has been involved in various training activities, such as the SAICA SMP training in 2014 and the FASSET Budget and Tax Update in 2015 and 2016.

CPD

This event and successful completion of the online assessment will secure 2 hours verifiable output Tax CPD points per session.

Event Investment

CPD subscribers: Free for all 2021 Tax Practitioner and Tax Accountant CPD subscribers.

25% discount on purchase of full series.

Regular price: R1 485.00

SAIT member: R1 185.00

Group price (five attendees maximum): R2 850.00

Payments & Cancellations

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  • If the cancellation occurs less than 4 working days prior to the event a 100% cancellation fee will apply.

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