Establishing a family office in the UK for an overseas family
By International Adviser, 4 Dec 18
Running a UK family office has unique issues, says Irwin Mitchell Private Wealth’s Alex Ruffel
Types of Structure: Typically, a family office is set up as a company. This gives it a separate legal identity, limitation of liability and the ability to obtain its own licences/enter into its own contracts.
In this case, the family should consider whether:
- The family office should be a stand-alone UK company;
- The family office should be a stand-alone non-UK company; or
- The family office should be a branch of an existing non-UK company.
If the family office is a stand-alone entity, the relationship between that entity and the other family structures/members should be considered and formalised by way of, for example, formal investment mandate/contracts for services.
The best structure will depend upon what the family’s role will be in terms of activities, responsibilities and personnel.
Tags: Alex Ruffel | Family Office | Irwin Mitchell
