Australia and New Zealand

We act as the primary point of contact to the Family Office for worldwide tax, estate planning and asset protection queries for a Monaco-resident principal and the related trust/corporate structures established for his children, providing multi-level structuring advice (trust and corporate) and coordinating local counsel across jurisdictions to deliver project-managed, cross-border solutions, including succession planning for significant Jersey family trusts (governance and potential migration), coordination between Jersey and Australian structures to support obligations to children from two marriages (including entrepreneurial support for older children), and advice on incentivisation arrangements, with strong potential for ongoing multi-jurisdictional work as the children’s circumstances evolve.

We act for the family office, trustees and holding entities of a multi billion dollar trust structure investing across a wide range of fund vehicles and bespoke alternative assets, providing ongoing strategic advice on investment structuring and periodic trust and asset reorganisations. Our work involves continuous analysis and restructuring to reflect the scale and complexity of the portfolio, including asset movements and coordination with advisers across c.50 jurisdictions, underscoring our role as trusted adviser on highly complex, cross border family office matters.

Acting for an Australian entrepreneur (nine-figure exit) on designing and implementing a cross-border family office and asset-holding platform focused on near-term tax efficiency and global investment deployment across Australia, the US and Asia, including establishing a Singapore investment company to manage East Asia/Australian investments, advising on US investments with our US-qualified London team, and supporting the Swiss office on employee incentivisation, alongside longer-term succession and governance planning for the client’s children (including Jersey trust structures to remove ownership from the Swiss office) and personal UK tax analysis in connection with the client’s planned departure from the UK following non-dom reforms, demonstrating our ability to coordinate integrated UK/US/Singapore advice.

Withers advised ultra-high net worth US citizens in relocating from the United States to New Zealand and Australia. This matter involved the restructuring of domestic trusts and business holdings to mitigate cross-border tax and estate administration complexities.

Withers represented the US-citizen spouse of an Australian investment firm founder in their cross-border US-Australian estate planning.

Formation of joint venture covering HK, Singapore and Australia, and advising on related employee share option scheme and general corporate matters

Defended claims by contractor for profit on project under an EPC Contract – overall disputed amount exceeded USD10 bn.  

Advised the manager of CDL Hospitality Real Estate Investment Trust in connection with CDL Hospitality Trust’s divestment of Novotel Brisbane Australia.

Representing an Australian-based software development company, with their various corporate matters, including (i) an employee share option scheme; (ii) general corporate advice and (iii) employment law issues with its employees.

We advised our client on their international fundraising plans for their alumni.