Structuring Advice

gift + loan back

A gift-and-loan-back arrangement involves a person gifting an asset to another person or entity, who then lends the asset back to the original owner on commercial terms. This can reduce the value of the original owner’s estate without incurring tax or transfer duty consequences.

These arrangements are commonly used to protect assets from future personal, business or professional risks or facilitate estate planning.

We can help with the structuring and implementation of gift and loan-back arrangements, including the preparation of trust deeds, gift deeds, loan agreements and related security documentation.

asset structuring

Asset structuring is about determining how assets should be owned to minimise risk and maximise protection. This means choosing the right ownership structure – whether that’s personal ownership, companies, trusts or superannuation – to help protect assets from creditors, family law claims, bankruptcy and other legal risks while maintaining tax and succession planning flexibility.

We help individuals, families and business owners establish and maintain ownership structures that preserve wealth, manage risk and support effective tax, succession and estate planning outcomes.

professionals + business owners

For business owners, professionals and individuals exposed to financial or legal risk, asset protection is an important part of managing risk and protecting personal and family wealth.

We help put the right ownership and structuring strategies in place to minimise exposure to business, professional and personal risks, including insolvency, family law claims and other legal risks while maintaining appropriate control, flexibility and taxation efficiency.

This can include separating personal and business assets, establishing appropriate trust and company structures, reducing personal liability exposure, and planning for business succession.

Restructuring is about reviewing and changing the way assets, businesses or investments are owned to make sure they continue to meet your commercial, taxation, asset protection and succession planning objectives.

This may involve transferring assets between existing entities, moving a business from one structure to another, establishing new companies or trusts, amending the terms of existing trust deeds, or simplifying and modernising outdated structures.

Changes in legislation, business growth, family circumstances, tax laws, or risk exposure can all be reasons to revisit your structure. The aim is to make sure that ownership arrangements remain appropriate, legally compliant and capable of supporting your long-term goals.

We help on all aspects of restructuring, including evaluating the legal, taxation and duty implications of proposed changes and implementing practical solutions that minimise risk and disruption while preserving the integrity of your overall structure.

Tax affects a wide range of personal, business and investment decisions. We help individuals, families, business owners, trustees of trusts and self-managed superannuation funds understand the tax consequences of transactions, structures and succession arrangements.

This includes capital gains tax, the small business CGT concessions, Division 7A, superannuation guarantee obligations, trust taxation, and taxation of deceased estates.

We also advise on the tax consequences of business and investment structures, restructures, property transactions, trusts, companies and superannuation.

State-based duties and taxes can apply across a broad range of transactions, structures and succession arrangements. We help individuals, families, business owners, trustees of trusts and self-managed superannuation funds on the application of Queensland and New South Wales duties and other state taxes.

This includes transfer duty, landholder duty, corporate reconstruction concessions, trust acquisitions + trust surrenders, declarations of trust, changes of trustee, transfers involving companies and trusts, deceased estates, family law transactions, and the availability of exemptions and concessions.

We also advise on the duty implications of restructures, business sales, property transactions and succession planning.

Trust taxation can be complex, with significant consequences for trustees, beneficiaries and family groups. We advise trustees, business owners, accountants and beneficiaries on the taxation implications of establishing, administering, restructuring and distributing from trusts.

This includes the taxation of discretionary, unit + testamentary trusts, trust distributions, unpaid present entitlements (UPEs), Division 7A, trust losses, streaming of income + capital gains, reimbursement agreements, family trust elections, trust cloning and restructures, and the taxation implications of changing trustees, appointors and beneficiaries.

Philanthropy enables individuals and families to create a lasting charitable legacy. We help put philanthropic strategies in place that complement broader taxation, succession and estate planning objectives.

This can include establishing private ancillary funds and incorporating charitable gifts into Wills and estate plans.