About Us and What We Do
Chancery Partners Limited is a specialist, boutique firm of professionals (barristers and accountants) which provides discreet, cutting-edge tax planning and cross-border structuring advice, mostly to high net worth, and ultra-high net worth individuals. Although based in South East Asia, in Hong Kong, the advice proffered is truly international covering East Asia & China, Western and Eastern Europe, India, Africa, the Middle East, and South America.
The intellectual technology and techniques behind the company have a proven track record (see: 'chancerygroup.net') and the company specializes in special purpose vehicles which (a) protect the client from unwelcome intrusions by third parties, (b) protect the assets from outside attack, (c) enables a succession plan to be materialized without any adverse tax consequences, (d) enables the client to remain private within the structure.
The above is achieved without the use of trusts, which the advisers (who are specialist trust lawyers) consider to be 'old hat' in today's trust-hostile environment.
With such specialist structures a client can achieve all the benefits of a discretionary trust yet retain almost complete control over the wealth within it, which, had the arrangement been a trust, would have been declared a 'sham' meaning no trust ever existed with resulting catastrophic tax consequences for the client. In the Trusts & Estates 1999 Legalease Special Report, at p.26, Catriona Syed, wrote, `It is impossible to estimate how many sham trusts are currently in existence. Estimates vary from 50% to 80% of all trusts.`.
The international tax planning industry has been unable to move ahead and away from trusts as their jurisprudence is so settled, and they are so ingrained in the legal education and practice of all lawyers and accountants. Attempts have been made at promoting 'foundations' as an alternative to trusts. Invariably, tax authorities will either assess to tax the 'settlor' or 'client/promoter' or the 'ultimate beneficiary' of the foundation either by using a 'look-through' approach (Australia) or by characterising it as a 'trust' (Canada). Foundations attract significant attention from tax authorities and a client using such vehicles can find himself back to square one, together with a massive tax liability in the process, and with years of unwelcome litigation from the tax authorities.
Chancery Partners' essential skill is to 'think outside the box' and to provide 'lateral' solutions which meet the complex planning needs of sophisticated high net worth individuals.
Chancery Partners are also experts in the advice of Islamic wealth structuring for legitimate tax avoidance and succession purposes.
Other specialist structures also enable cross-border commercial transactions to escape tax perfectly legitimately by the judicious and careful use of tax treaties, special purpose vehicles, or a combination of the two or more, possibly including corporate migration or amalgamation. Chancery Partners use a combination of jurisdictions to achieve these results, and do not seek to 'sell' any particular location, the company calls this 'cocktail' planning, and uses the appropriate and most applicable jurisdictions in order to provide the client with the best bespoke solution for his requirements. However, with the directors having just opened their office in Central, and having already enjoyed a presence in Hong Kong for a combined total of over 35 years, the reader might be able to infer which jurisdiction the directors currently favour.
Chancery Partners Limited – out of the ordinary, bespoke tax planning.
