Family Governance, Constitutions and Structuring for Professionals

Family Governance, Constitutions and Structuring for Professionals
10 June 2026 – Warsaw

Many of us spend months working with our clients and designing amazing foundations, trusts and other tax-efficient legal structures. But have you ever noticed how sometimes they don’t work as well in practice as you thought they would?

It’s not because there is a problem with your structures. All too often in the CEE region, it’s because the agenda was set by your client, reflecting his or her vision, ideas and goals, but ignoring the opinions and ideas of the family.

If you force things on people, you cannot be surprised if they don’t buy in.

There is a better way.

If you lead your conversation with family governance; if you make the family constitution and the letter of wishes the first tasks; if you involve the wider family more, then you will find all the subsequent steps in the process will be much easier, much faster, and most importantly, they will actually deliver the right outcomes.

That is the objective of this course. We will explore what family governance is, how it works, and how to implement it

The course takes place in Warsaw on 10 June 2026 from 13:00 – 17:30. It is designed for lawyers, tax advisors, and family office professionals.

You will learn

What family governance is

How to guide your clients through this process

How it can be a non-threatening entrée to the wider succession planning process

How to use it as a tool to improve client relationships and structuring success.

Course Content

1. What is Family Governance?

- - Introduction to family governance
  - Components: (family meetings, family forum, family council, constitution, letter of wishes etc.)
  - Outputs: (vision, values, clear expectations, family alignment, communication)

2. Why it Matters?

- - The importance of good family and succession planning in CEE in 2026
  - How family governance makes outcomes clearer. (It is less threatening but leads towards legal structure)
  - Understanding and preventing the sources of conflict. – preserving the business

3. How to Build it?

- - 2 routes: ‘Moses’ vs consensus
  - The challenges of getting the founder to let go
  - Pulling strings from the grave. Unrealistic demands.
  - Strict Rules vs Guidelines. Identifying what’s really important
  - Focused family meetings
  - Family models and challenges: (Top down / aligned / unprepared / conflicted)
  - Staff vs Family. Passing leadership
  - Step-by-step process.

4. What are the Outputs?

- - Typical content of a good constitution. Section by section walk through
  - How does the family fit in the business? How does the business fit in the family?
  - Design issues (Beware of democracy)
  - Responsible stewardship. Focused philanthropy. Aligning values across business / family / structures
  - Signatures

5. How to Implement it?

- - Family Forum
  - Conditions for participation
  - Teens and children
  - Decision-making
  - Family Council (multi-generational flexibility) – from everyone to an executive
  - Using an enforcer – chain of succession
  - Exit strategies
  - International families / tax
  - Family Office – Do you need one?

Your Trainer

James Turnbull, TEP LLB is an independent family succession adviser with extensive experience in multi‑generational planning in the CEE region. He is enrolled as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand and has spent years working with families, trustees and professional advisers to design effective structures that work in practice, not just on paper.

James was formerly CEO of Svěřenské fondy a trusty s.r.o., the Czech Republic’s first specialist trust administration company, which he founded in 2014. He chairs the Czech & Slovak Chapter of The Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners (STEP) and is a Board Member of Asociace pro podporu a rozvoj svěřenských fondů.

A recognised educator and voice in the field, James is co‑author of the Czech trust textbook Svěřenské fondy – krok za krokem and is contributing Editor of Trust Laws in the Czech Republic and Hungary. He regularly speaks at conferences and lectures at professional courses and accreditation programmes. His approach emphasises clarity, engagement with families, and strategies that deliver real outcomes for clients and their advisors.

Registration

Course fee: 6,000 CZK / 250 EUR / 1050 PLN.

The course will take place in central Warsaw from 13:00 – 17:30 on 10 June 2026 but can be delivered elsewhere on request.