How I help

Welcome to the website of James Turnbull TEP LLB.

I help families and their advisers pass wealth and business from one generation to the next.   I focus on understanding family values and helping founders and their families achieve their goals.

As part of this, I also have expert knowledge of family foundations, trusts and other structures for managing family wealth.

Have you decided to do something about the future of your family wealth and family business, but you don’t know how to start?

Have you started your journey, but you are not sure that you are heading in the right direction? When you are going through the process of setting up something new it can sometimes be confusing or even stressful.

Are you sure what you are doing is right?  Will it work?  Are you doing it in the most effective way?

Because of these common concerns, it’s great to have an expert on your team.  Especially in the CEE region, many existing advisers lack the depth of knowledge and experience you need.  I can work alongside them, helping them and, most importantly, helping you to make sure you achieve the right outcome.

Many advisers also like to focus on their tools, talking about things like wills, inheritance contracts, family foundations, shareholder agreements, etc.  These tools can be helpful but in the end they are not really that important.  What is important is understanding what you want to achieve and developing a roadmap to get there.  Once you know where you are going, it is much easier to work out how to get there.

    • I can help you develop your strategy and structure so that it works properly
    • I can make sure that you remain fully in control – both through the establishment phase and afterwards
    • I can help your family communicate – so that goals and strategy are shared and aligned
    • If family conflict is blocking progress, I may be able to help resolve it
    • I can work with you to fill any gaps in the knowledge and experience of your advisory team
    • I can champion your interests and ensure that your solution is really yours and that it delivers what YOU want (not what your advisers or providers want).
    • I can help you find the providers and professionals you need.  People with the skills, know-how, substance, and credibility to do the job correctly
    • I can help make sure you pay the right price for your solution
    • I can help you identify the right jurisdiction to achieve your goals
    • I can review draft documents to look for any pitfalls or potential problems, and contribute comments and suggestions
    • If you already have a trust, foundation, or family governance structure, I can review it to check that it is robust and effective.
    • I can provide general guidance and help.

I also provide training for advisers and families on family governance, trusts, foundations, and structuring, and I help families and advisory groups build family office solutions.

Who I help

I help people anywhere in the CEE region.  I can also undertake projects further afield by agreement.

Families

I primarily work with families from the CEE Region who are establishing trusts or foundations.

Business

I also work with companies and business owners who want to use trusts to achieve commercial objectives.

Lawyers and Private Bankers

I also work with and alongside lawyers and other professional advisers – adding depth to your team when dealing with trust and foundation establishment

Trust Providers

I am also occasionally engaged by trust providers when they are dealing with clients who they feel lack the support they need to ensure the process and outcomes are optimal.

 

What I do not do

I am an independent adviser.

I do not establish trusts or foundations myself and always encourage clients to use professional and credible partners to do this

I do not provide legal or tax advisory services.  I encourage clients to make sure that they have the right advisers in these areas, and I work alongside those advisers.

How much does it cost?

Our first introductory call or meeting is complimentary, provided it remains exploratory in nature. Where a meeting involves substantive advice or the sharing of know-how, my standard hourly rate will apply from the outset — something I’ll always flag in advance. Further work is carried out on agreed contractual terms.

My standard fees are 250 EUR per hour plus costs and disbursements.

For larger projects, I can negotiate special pricing.