TL4 & ConTrA present Private Client Summer School: The Ultimate Insider’s Guide

Jo qualified as a solicitor of England and Wales in 2008, working as a private client solicitor in the UK before beginning her trust career at Summit Trust International SA in Geneva in 2011. Jo has a wide range of experience in trust and company management, providing bespoke private client trusteeship to ultra-high value, complex international trust structures, within which an array of real assets are managed, including fine art, vintage cars, shipping fleets, yachts, private equity, operating businesses and commercial and residential property. Jo is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP). In 2018 and 2020, Jo won Trustee of the Year at the Citywealth Magic Circle Awards. Jo speaks English and French.

James joined Stevens & Bolton in 2017, having trained and qualified at a Top 50 firm. He became a partner in 2019.

James acts predominately for private clients or for those who advise private clients, such as corporate trustees, private banks and other law firms.

James advises on claims by or involving estates and trusts, most commonly involving high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals. He acts for executors, trustees and beneficiaries, and also specialises in advising on claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

James also has a substantial practice advising on claims overlapping the trusts and family court jurisdictions, dealing with trustees and beneficiaries who have become involved in divorce proceedings and on issues arising from the enforcement and implantation of ancillary relief orders made in divorce proceedings.

James has been listed in the "Excellence" category in Legal Week’s Private Client Global Elite Directory 2024, in the Citywealth “Top 100 Private Client Litigators List 2023” and is ranked as a “Top Recommended 2023 Contentious Tax & Trust Lawyer” in the Spears 500.He is ranked in Band 1 in Chambers HNW and as a “Next Generation Partner” in The Legal 500.

James is a co-chair of ConTrA, the Contentious Trusts Association

Ashleigh is a Senior Associate in our Trust and Estate Disputes team. Recognised as an “Associate to Watch” in the Chambers HNW Guide, she is described as “really knowledgeable and also very good with clients”, Ashleigh has experience spanning the full spectrum of trust and estate disputes.

Instructed by both professionals and private individuals, based in the UK and internationally, Ashleigh acts for clients on high value and complex family disputes.

Her expertise in contentious trusts include advising on trustee powers and breach of trust claims, applications for the removal and replacement of trustees, disputes involving protectors and the variation of trusts.

Where probate disputes arise, Ashleigh has experience of advising on validity challenges to Wills, 1975 Inheritance Act claims as well as disputes between executors and/or beneficiaries and claims relating to inherited land and property, including proprietary estoppel claims.

Ashleigh is regularly asked by clients and fiduciaries to ‘stress test’ trusts or wills and assist our Private Client team in winding up trust structures or the division of trust assets.

She also has experience in contested Court of Protection matters and professional negligence claims.

Ashleigh is co-chair of ConTrA (the Contentious Trusts Association).

Chris Moorcroft advises individuals and families on wealth planning and succession matters. This includes the use of estate planning vehicles such as companies, trusts and foundations to manage the passing of wealth and family businesses to younger generations, to protect wealth from unexpected events like death and incapacity, to protect wealth from adverse third parties and to manage complex cross-border tax problems involving multiple jurisdictions.

He advises on will planning and probate involving assets spread across jurisdictions, including the application of the EU Succession Regulation. He frequently deals with wills and probates which involve more than one jurisdiction and acts as executor and administrator of estates, as well as the trustee of a charitable trust.

He represents wealthy individuals and families from around the world, with a particular focus on US-connected clients and individuals from the Middle East and Africa. In addition, he also represents professional trust companies and other fiduciaries on issues relating to the design and management of structures, risk mitigation (including fiduciary risk), data protection and tax.

A significant element of his expertise involves advising UK and international high net worth individuals who are resident, investing or spending time in UK on how to structure their assets, including advice relating to the remittance basis regime and the structuring of UK residential property.

Jacob specialises in domestic and international litigation, with a particular focus on trust disputes, international succession and estate disputes and fraud. 

He advises on a broad range of litigation both in England and across the world, including the BVI, Guernsey, Cayman, Cyprus and Hong Kong.

Jacob edits the Contentious Matters section of the Butterworths Wills, Probate and Administration Service.

Jacob is ranked as a leading individual in the 2021 UK Legal 500 guide.  He is a qualified solicitor advocate and sits as a Magistrate in London.

Joe has over 30 years’ experience in the finance industry, most of it as a professional trustee. His own experience has given him unique insight into the workings of trust companies and their clients. 

Joe Crome, CAP®, leads the American Donor Fund team, delivering a market leading philanthropy service for dual US/UK taxpayers.

In his dual role, Joe also leads CAF’s Business Development team, to drive growth and accelerate business development activities across our Giving and Impact Services.

Joe’s expertise specialises in charitable grant-making regulations in the UK and US, donating complex assets, philanthropy advice for individuals and families, and anti-money laundering and related due diligence pertaining to charitable donations.

Joe has completed the Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy designation with the American College of Financial Services, the only adviser working in the UK to have done so.

David Kilshaw is a Manging Director with Rothschild & Co and Head of Private Client Wealth Solutions.

A qualified lawyer and former partner with KPMG, EY and Rawlinson & Hunter,  David no longer provides tax advice but works alongside leading lawyers and accountants to help clients craft solutions to their personal and business needs. David received the STEP Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018

Katherine advises professional trustees, settlors and beneficiaries on matters relevant to trusts and foundations, including drafting trust deeds and advising on complex structures including employee reward schemes, JPUTs and pensions.

Katherine joined Ogier in 2012 having previously been a Partner at Harvey Ingram Shakespeare; working in their Leicester and Birmingham offices advising a variety of high net worth private, charitable and commercial clients on contentious and non-contentious issues.

Katherine graduated from the University of Lincoln with a BA Hons in Law and French and completed her academic training at College of Law, York.

Katherine is a member of the International Pension and Employee Benefit Association Lawyers (IPEBLA), the  Association of Contentious Trusts and Probate Specialists (ACTAPS), the working party for charities legislation in Jersey and until leaving the UK in 2012 was the Vice Chair of the Law Society of England and Wales Private Client Section.

Katherine has been recognised in the Citywealth IFC Power Women Top 200 list for 2018.

Alexandra Giles is a solicitor specialising in trusts and estates disputes.

Alexandra Giles advises individuals, beneficiaries and trustees, as both claimants and defendants, in a full range of trusts and estates disputes.  

Her practice encompasses acting in claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, challenges to the validity of wills, promissory estoppel claims, breach of trust claims and the removal of executors and trustees. 

Alexandra also advises on disputed Court of Protection applications, including the appointment and removal of deputies or attorneys, management disputes, and statutory will applications. 

She understands the emotional difficulty clients can face dealing with private wealth disputes.  She is compassionate, whilst providing an analytical and pragmatic focus to resolving her clients' disputes. 

Erin Trimble-Cregeen is Counsel and practises in Appleby’s Dispute Resolution teams in the Isle of Man and Jersey. Having trained and qualified in the Isle of Man, Erin joined Appleby in October 2015 after gaining several years’ experience at a leading offshore firm in Guernsey.

Erin specialises in trust disputes and general trust advisory work including advising trustees and beneficiaries on a wide range of contentious trust and estates issues and regularly presents to trust service providers on the obligations of trustees.

Rachel is a trust and estates disputes specialist and a Director in the Freeths Private Client Dispute Resolution Team.

She acts for individuals, executors, trustees, beneficiaries and relatives/friends of the deceased in inheritance and trust disputes. She deals with a wide range of cases concerning the validity of a will; claims against estates for financial provision; disputed trusts; construction and rectification applications and applications to remove executors and trustees. She is known for dealing with complicated, multi-party and often cross jurisdictional disputes. Rachel also acts for individuals in disputed Court of Protection applications made during a person’s lifetime. Often, this is a dispute between siblings or other family members as to what is in the best interests of the person affected. She has a reputation for successfully assisting clients to achieve cost effective and timely settlements and for providing pragmatic advice to clients in sensitive family disputes.

Daniel’s practice centres on private client and insolvency disputes in England and Wales and the British Virgin Islands. He is recognised as a Rising Star by Legal 500, where he is described as “an excellent junior” who is “technically thorough and has meticulous attention to detail. He communicates complex issues in a clear, concise and persuasive way”.

Daniel has worked for a commercial litigation boutique and has also spent time on secondment at a leading offshore law firm. As a result, he readily appreciates the needs of his clients and prides himself on his user-friendly attitude and ability to work collaboratively with his solicitors and other barristers, as required.

His multidisciplinary approach across chambers’ core practice areas works to his clients’ advantage, particularly in complex cases involving several areas of law. In addition to private client, insolvency and commercial disputes, Daniel is experienced in property and professional liability matters and consequently is well-placed to offer holistic and pragmatic solutions.

Geoff specialises in resolving troublesome issues relating to trusts and estates, whether domestic or international. Chambers describes him as a “real superstar”. Geoff is dual-qualified in England and Wales, and California. He was a litigator in San Francisco before cross-qualifying and relocating to London.

Geoff’s experience consists entirely of dealing with complex litigation relating to trusts and estates, often with an offshore element. He has experience with cases involving the UK, US, Channel Islands, Cayman Islands, BVI and Hong Kong, among other jurisdictions. Geoff is equally at ease dealing with purely domestic matters. Unusually for a litigator, Geoff acts as a trustee, which gives him a first-hand view of the issues facing trusts and trustees.

Beth is a senior private client solicitor with expertise in disputes arising from estates and trusts.

Her experience includes complex probate claims (particularly lack of mental capacity and undue influence), claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, trust disputes, removal of executors and trustees, and proprietary estoppel claims.

Beth's clients include high net worth individuals, executors and beneficiaries, educational establishments, charities, and trustees.

Clients value Beth’s practical and efficient approach, assisting them in reaching their desired outcome while keeping in the mind wider issues often at play in disputes of this nature. Her focus is on understanding her clients’ aims and achieving them through a range of approaches, including mediation and other alternative dispute resolution.

Beth recently acted for an international charity in securing a legacy of valuable land through a negotiated settlement, avoiding the need for potentially lengthy court proceedings and possible reputational damage. She also achieved a significant settlement through mediation for her clients in a long-running trust dispute concerning valuable development land.

Beth has been a member of the Association of Contentious Trust and Probate Specialists (ACTAPS) since 2018 and is also a member of the Contentious Trusts Association and STEP. She has completed the STEP Advanced Certificate in Trust Disputes. Beth is a trustee of an almshouse charity, helping to address the needs of the beneficiaries and safeguard the charity’s future.

Emma is a solicitor in the Private Client team and advises on a wide range of succession planning issues. This involves assisting her clients with complex tax regimes as well as drafting and advising on tax efficient and flexible wills, trusts and powers of attorney. She has a particular specialism advising in relation to corporate structures to hold investments and assist with the long term management of wealth for future generations, including establishing and advising existing Family Investment Companies. 

Emma’s clients are varied, ranging from entrepreneurs and business owners to high profile individuals in the sport, media and entertainment sector.

Emma is listed as a Rising Star in Legal 500 and has been praised for being "clear, good at keeping the ball rolling and efficient" as well as producing advice that was "pitched at exactly the right level."

Emma has been named in Citywealth's Top 100 Private Client Lawyers 2021 and won a Future Leader award at the Powerwomen Awards in 2020. In 2019 she was named one of​ eprivateclient's "Top 35 Under 35" private client practitioners. 

Emma’s focus is to help her clients structure their affairs and protect their assets in a tax efficient way. She has recently assisted a high net worth family to restructure their property ownership. This involved making use of an existing LLP, with a long term strategy which incorporates a family investment company and a new trust. Although the availability of valuable inheritance tax reliefs was integral to the advice, the main driver was establishing a single structure for the management of the property, with a view to passing it on to the next generation.

Emma is a full member of the Society of Trusts and Estate Practitioners (STEP), having completed the STEP Diploma with distinctions in all exams. She received a prestigious Worldwide Excellence Award for her Trusts exam. This has provided her with the in depth technical expertise required to assist her clients.

James is a Group Partner in Private Client and Trusts team. He joined Collas Crill in January 2024. James is an English barrister and Jersey Advocate and has a busy practice with a particular focus on contentious and non-contentious trust work. 

He advises, undertakes drafting work, and acts for beneficiaries, trustees and other power-holders in relation to breach of trust claims, asset tracing/recovery and claims for secondary liability against accessories, issues concerning trust administration, the appointment and removal of trustees and the exercise of powers, applications to court for directions, the variation and rectification of trusts and the disclosure of information to beneficiaries and third parties, jurisdiction disputes and the enforcement of foreign judgments against trustees and beneficiaries and issues concerning trustees’ rights of indemnity, fees and legal cost.

James also advises in relation to a broad range of contentious commercial and company law disputes. He is named as a Rising Star in Legal 500 UK 2023 and ranked in Chambers UK and Global 2023.

Millie joined chambers in October 2022 on successful completion of her pupillage. Millie has fast developed a broad commercial chancery practice, with a particular focus on private client and property disputes, both domestic and offshore. This is dovetailed by Millie’s commercial and insolvency practice, which gives her an edge when it comes to complex disputes engaging multiple and overlapping areas of law.

Millie has been praised as a deft advocate, regularly appearing in her own right in the High Court and County Court. She recently acted as sole counsel for the successful claimant in a 5-day trial of a TOLATA claim. Millie has also appeared unled in the Court of Appeal.

Millie is currently seconded to the Private Wealth Disputes team of Fladgate LLP. During her time there, Millie has worked on a range of high value and complex trusts and probate disputes, including assisting in the seminal case of Al-Thani v Al Thani.

Before coming to the Bar, Millie obtained a first-class degree in Law from University College London. Outside chambers, Millie is a keen linguist and is currently learning Japanese.

George is an Senior Associate within the Private Client group specialising in contentious trusts. He advises on contentious trust and estate matters with a focus on advising and representing trustees and high net worth individuals on a range of trust issues in litigation. George also advises on disputes involving challenges to wills, claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, proprietary estoppel and other equitable claims including trust Arbitrations. 

James' work encompasses dispute resolution, strategic advice and restructuring in relation to legal and commercial challenges faced by high net worth individuals, trusts and corporate structures.

Identified in 2020 by Legal 500 as a “Rising Star” and one of the eprivateclient Top 35 under 35, James is an associate in the Firm’s top tier private wealth disputes team. He previously trained and qualified at Macfarlanes where he worked in their private client advisory team and joined the Firm in 2018 in order to focus on private wealth disputes.

A significant proportion of James’ work relates to international matters with little (or no) connection with the UK.