Trust specialist
From 1974 to the present
John Brown is able to provide advice and expertise as a trust specialist due to his extensive trust-related experience in a wide range of subject-matter from 1974 to the present. As a trust specialist John has been able to find solutions to complex and difficult trust-related issues which require a level of specialist knowledge and expertise. In this capacity, John has assisted senior barristers to obtain successful litigation results and provided solutions where other practitioners have sought for answers that have proved elusive.
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“I have also discussed litigation cases with Mr Brown, seeking his views on approaches to challenging a specific trust or, challenging the trustees in their administration of the trust…[as a trust specialist] he has been able to bring a fresh approach and solution, where the matter has previously been considered carefully by other professionals in his field”,
Deborah Chambers, QC
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Knowledge & Experience as a Trust Specialist
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John’s knowledge and experience as a trust specialist led him to launch, with tax and commercial law publishers, CCH NZ Ltd, a dedicated trust law report series, New Zealand Trust Reports (NZTR). A factor that prompted this initiative was watching lawyers bring litigation or cases on appeal, without the assistance of a trust specialist, and unaware of recent appellate court decisions which may have doomed their appeal before it commenced. The law report series incorporates the latest leading judgments from the New Zealand High Court and appellate Courts with accompanying head notes and is designed to equip trust lawyers and other professionals working in the field of trusts to obtain better results for their clients.
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Expertise
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As a trust specialist, John offers expertise in the commercial use of trusts to hold substantial life insurance policies as an aspect of business protection and succession planning solutions. In this area, even good trust lawyers may have limited experience – requiring the use of a trust specialist with excellent understanding of life insurance. This is particularly so where the insurance may, on claim, create many millions of dollars virtually overnight - not a place for weak documentation. The sums of money at risk; open to be abused, subject to adverse tax rulings or vulnerable to litigation by “interested parties” are too great. A trust specialist is required from the beginning, when business protection and succession planning and possible life insurance solutions are being considered by the business and its professional advisers.
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A recent court decision that required trust specialist skills involved court approval to a trust variation that was unique and previously thought not to be possible:
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“The most recent project on which I have been involved with John was assisting him in putting before the High Court a highly complex scheme for variation of a trust …. John developed a scheme for variation of this trust which included the innovative use of life insurance and I was able to successfully pilot this through the High Court”.
Peter McKenzie CNZM QC