MARKET-LEADING EXPERTISE

CONTENTIOUS TRUST
DISPUTES
ctice brochure d14
CONTENTIOUS TRUST DISPUTES

OVERVIEW

Modern trust disputes are often We regularly act for institutional clients, including
banks and trust companies, trustees, their
complex involving large corporate insurers, beneficiaries and high net worth
structures with offshore elements individuals. We provide specialist advice in
across multiple jurisdictions. investment fund, investment management and
insolvency disputes. Our experience covers pure
Our trust disputes team advises advisory work and Beddoe applications through to
on the full range of trust and hostile actions pursuing or defending trustees in
estate disputes across all major relation to claims for breach of trust and third
party claims by or against trustees. We also have
jurisdictions where the trust is a experience of the arbitration of trust disputes.
vehicle for holding assets.

OUR INTERNATIONAL

KAZAKHSTAN
PRESENCE

HONG KONG
FRANKFURT

SINGAPORE
NEW YORK

SHANGHAI
BANGKOK
BRUSSELS

MOSCOW

JAKARTA
UKRAINE
BELFAST
LONDON
MADRID

NORDIC

BEIJING
BERLIN

TOKYO
GROUP

GROUP

GROUP

SEOUL
PARIS

Herbert Smith Freehills office

Associated office
GROUP
LATIN AMERICA

AFRICA GROUP
JOHANNESBURG

GROUP
SAUDI ARABIA
DOHA
DUBAI

INDIA GROUP

PERTH
MELBOURNE
SYDNEY
BRISBANE

Group
Legal services are provided in Indonesia,
in Jakarta, through Herbert Smith Freehills
LLP's ("HSF") association with Hiswara
Bunjamin & Tandjung ("HBT"). HSF and
HBT are two independent firms which
have a formal association in Indonesia.
Additionally, our experience in asset tracing and
fraud work combined with our unparalleled
reputation in commercial litigation means we have
the ability and resources to deal with the largest and
most complex trust disputes. Our offering is
bolstered by the direct and immediate access to
our in-house advocacy group which contains QCs
with specific expertise in this field.
Our lawyers have been involved in some of
the most significant and high profile trust cases
in recent history including the seminal case of
Target v Redferns, the long running Thyssen
litigation in Bermuda and the Kostic litigation
in London.

We have litigated in leading onshore jurisdictions

including England and Wales, Hong Kong, and
Singapore, as well as all major offshore
jurisdictions such as Bermuda, the Cayman
Islands, BVI, Cyprus, Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of
Man and the DIFC Court.

RANKED TIER 1 FOR RANKED TIER 1 FOR

RANKED BAND 1 FOR DISPUTE RESOLUTION DISPUTE RESOLUTION
LITIGATION- ELITE LEGAL 500 - COMMERCIAL
CHAMBERS UK 2016 ASIA-PACIFIC 2016 LITIGATION
LEGAL 500 UK 2015
 HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS

CURRENT CREDENTIALS INCLUDE:

BREACH OF TRUST ESTATES CLAIMS

acting for the beneficiary in arbitration
proceedings in Israel to recover substantial
trust assets held under English trusts
Richardson v Glencore: defending Appleby
against a £10 million claim in the Commercial
Court in London by a former employee of
Glencore
Investec Trust (Guernsey) Ltd v Glenalla Properties
Ltd: acting for Rawlinson & Hunter Trustees
SA, the trustees of the Tchenguiz Discretionary
Trust in proceedings in the Royal Court in
Guernsey involving claims by creditors to
enforce loans of circa £181 million
acting for a beneficiary of a US$1 billion
Cayman Islands trust fund in relation to breach
of trust and other allegations against the
institutional trustee and other beneficiaries
acting for the executors of a Hong Kong estate
in a multi-million pound asset recovery action
in London involving allegations of undue
influence
advising an executor in cross-jurisdictional
proceedings in Malaysia and Hong Kong
involving an individual claiming to be a child
of the testator and the jurisdiction to order
DNA tests
advising the executor in the administration of a
US$1 billion Hong Kong estate in offshore
jurisdictions, including Jersey, Mauritius, BVI
and the Turks and Caicos Islands

THIRD PARTY CLAIMS

Royds v The International Law Partnership: Acting
for trustees and action group in both claims
“A top choice for
and coverage disputes arising out of the complex litigation, and
provisional liquidation and collapse of a foreign praised for its regional
property group
presence and depth”
National Bonds Corporation v Taaleem: acting for
CHAMBERS ASIA-PACIFIC
Deyaar PJSC in the DIFC Courts in AED 160 2016
million claim relating to the assignment of a
beneficial interest under the trust of a flagship
development
“The team are extremely
sophisticated, highly
intelligent and produce
a very good work
product. You can be
assured they have
thought of everything”
CHAMBERS UK 2016

CONTACTS
Tom Leech QC
Partner, London
T +44 20 7466 2736
tom.leech@hsf.com
Richard Norridge
Partner, Hong Kong
Head of Private Wealth - Asia
T +852 2101 4107
richard.norridge@hsf.com
Anna Sutherland
Partner, Sydney
T +61 2 9225 5280
anna.sutherland@hsf.com
Gareth Keillor
Senior associate, London
T +44 20 7466 2350
gareth.keillor@hsf.com
Team members are members of ACTAPS and STEP.
HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS
“Sources comment on the user-friendly nature
of his advice and highlight his skill both at
drafting and advocacy”
CHAMBERS UK 2014
“Impressively knowledgeable in a wide range
of areas and second to none when it comes
to responsiveness”
CHAMBERS UK 2014
“Excellent for contentious private client work and
shareholder disputes”
CHAMBERS ASIA-PACIFIC 2016
“He deftly balances the intellectual and the
practical aspects of problem solving and is
very client-focused”
CHAMBERS ASIA-PACIFIC 2015
“Cuts to the real issues directors need to be
concerned about”
ASIA PACIFIC LEGAL 2015-16
“User-friendly and very responsive.
Sharp and analytical, and always provides
clear and practical advice”
INVESTMENT FIRM CLIENT
HERBERTSMITHFREEHILLS.COM

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SEOUL
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DOHA MELBOURNE
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DUBAI MOSCOW
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F +81 3 5412 5413

© Herbert Smith Freehills LLP 2015 1483B /301115

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