This book is concerned with the development of the trust idea in common law jurisdictions, whether mainland or offshore, and in civil law jurisdictions. While trusts are important for preserving family wealth and influence, over ninety per cent of the value of trust funds is found in commercial or financial trusts, about which little has been written. It is interest in the latter type of trust that is likely to lead to the development of the trust idea in European mainland jurisdictions, especially as the economic destinies of European jurisdictions become increasingly intertwined and as the Hague Convention on the Recognition of Trusts comes to be implemented. In this volume the work of leading trust scholars in Canada, England, the USA, Germany and Japan is brought together to explore key issues in trust law, until now not covered in any single resource: the full elasticity of the trust concept; the variety and significance of commercial or financial trusts; the scope for reforming trust law in various jurisdictions to make it more economically efficient in assisting in the preservation and generation of wealth; the potential for the development of a core trust concept in civil law jurisdictions as a special part of the law of obligations, without any need to create equitable proprietary interests in favour of beneficiaries. Modern International Developments in Trust Law will be of interest not only to academic trust lawyers and comparative lawyers, but to common law and civil law practitioners, whether interested in taking advantage of foreign trust laws, or in developing in their local jurisdictions new ideas obtained from foreign jurisdictions.

Rev. versions of papers originally presented at a conference held on Jan. 6-7, 1996 in Cambridge, U.K.

The International Trust presents an in-depth analysis of a range of highly topical issues of great significance in the area of international trust law. Under the editorship of a leading trust law specialist, a team of eminent contributors have applied their expertise to addressing a range of subjects at the cutting edge of thinking in this area. Part I of the book contains the indispensable conflict of laws chapters, each now extensively updated by its original author. Part II covers a wide variety of issues crucial to trust advisers, each updated to take in the latest developments in areas including trusts and finance law, money laundering and trusts, protectors and purpose trusts. Part III contains chapters on Italy and China - jurisdictions in which recent trust law developments have generated considerable international interest. Part IV contains Professor Donovan Waters' notable chapter on the future of the trust fully updated by the author.

International Trust Laws is a wide-ranging comparative guide to the law of trusts across a number of important jurisdictions, with analysis of issues surrounding the creation of trusts, the powers and duties of trustees, mechanisms of control, and the special uses of trusts. The book combines academic rigour and analysis with a practical focus on trusts in the real world, including assets which modern settlors wish to envelop in a trust; liability concerns of trustees; and the governance, command, and control mechanisms which increasingly form the largest feature of trust creation. It also provides valuable background for trust law practitioners, whether they advise on trusts, draft trust documents, or litigate trust-related matters. The new edition has been fully revised and updated to address important developments in case law and legislation.--

The settlor : reserved powers and private trust companies -- Beneficial interests : protection, forfeiture, and trust termination -- Disclosure of information to the eneficiaries and letters of wishes -- Trustees' dispositive powers and discretionary trusts -- The rule in Hastings-Bass, mistake, and rectification -- Trustee exemption clauses -- Trustee liability to third parties -- Trustees' remuneration, expenses, and indemnity -- Directed trusts and delegated trusts -- Protectors -- Firewall legislation -- Asset protection trusts -- Non-charitable purpose trusts -- Trusts without equity -- Quistclose trusts

A fast-growing legal system and economy in medieval and early modern Rome saw a rapid increase in the need for written documents. Brokers of Public Trust examines the emergence of the modern notarial profession—free market scribes responsible for producing original legal documents and their copies. Notarial acts often go unnoticed, but they are essential to understanding the history of writing practices and attitudes toward official documentation. Based on new archival research, Brokers of Public Trust focuses on the government officials, notaries, and consumers who regulated, wrote, and purchased notarial documents in Rome between the 14th and 18th centuries. Historian Laurie Nussdorfer chronicles the training of professional notaries and the construction of public archives, explaining why notarial documents exist, who made them, and how they came to be regarded as authoritative evidence. In doing so, Nussdorfer describes a profession of crucial importance to the people and government of the time, as well as to scholars who turn to notarial documents as invaluable and irreplaceable historical sources. This magisterial new work brings fresh insight into the essential functions of early modern Roman society and the development of the modern state.

A comprehensive, up-to-date material source offering comparison and analysis of trust laws concerned with major jurisdictions across the globe. Contains a digest of trust laws for each of the jurisdictions; considers special issues of related interest to the international trust practitioner and features the complete text of the trust statutes of jurisdictions.