Trusts
A trust is a way of controlling and protecting your assets.
If you make a gift, the person receiving the gift assumes all rights over it and can do with it how they wish. If you make the gift into a trust, then you can attach certain conditions to it.
A trust is the formal transfer of assets, e.g. your house, shares, cash etc, to a small group of people with the instructions that the assets are held for the benefit of others.
If the trust is made in lifetime, then the details of the trust will usually be documented by a trust deed. If it is created on death then the details of the trust will be in the Will, a ‘Will Trust’. Whether in lifetime or by Will, the trust document will state who are responsible for looking after the assets (the trustees) and who will benefit (the beneficiaries). The document will also outline any rules and conditions that the trustees and beneficiaries must follow.
