Steven Kempster

Steven acts in many of the largest and most complex international trust and succession disputes, the majority of which are resolved successfully without a public court decision.

Acting for high-net worth international businessman on successfully setting aside transfers into various offshore trusts that had triggered unnecessary tax on £10m+ (heard in English court in August 2019)

Acting for beneficiaries of an estate in proceedings that went to the Court of Appeal in England on the issue of removing executors of a Will and on the costs of the dispute; reported as Griffin v Higgs [2018]

Acting for trustees of substantial family trusts seeking order from the Court for additional powers under Section 57 Trustee Act 1925; reported as Gelber v The Sunderland Foundation [2018]

Advising a blue-chip offshore trust company on its involvement in English divorce proceedings concerning attacks on trusts worth over £25 million. We handled the disclosure issues for the trustee and eventually the case was concluded without the trustee being formally joined to the English proceedings.

Steven and Deborah Nicholls-Carr brought the highest value Inheritance Act claim to date in Wooldridge v Wooldridge (2016). We were acting for a widow who sought to increase provision under her husband's will after his death in a tragic helicopter accident.

Advising in the Matter of the F Settlement and the A Trust (2015) a landmark decision of the Bermuda court setting aside trustee decisions.

The case of BQ v DQ (2010) a decision of the Bermuda Court concerning a successful challenge to the validity of two high value trusts over 30 years after they had been purportedly established.