Postgraduate Laws programme:
Master of Laws (LLM), Postgraduate Diploma and Postgraduate Certificate
Course outline
| International and comparative trust law |
Students are not required to have studied the 'Law of trusts' at
undergraduate level. However, it is advisable to have done so, for this course assumes that students are familiar with, and have an understanding of, the 'Law of trusts' and the standard works on the subject up to LLB level or its equivalent. Knowledge of the relevant principles of the 'Conflict of laws' is useful, though not essential. |
| Section A: The nature of the English trust |
| · Survey of the English law of trusts |
| · Shams |
| · The trust as property-holding vehicle and as obligation |
| · The core content of a trust |
| · The Beneficiary Principle: trusts for non-charitable purposes |
| Section B: Offshore purpose trusts |
| · Introduction to offshore non-charitable purpose trusts |
| · Belize |
| · Bermuda |
| · The British Virgin Islands |
| · The Cook Islands |
| · Cyprus |
| · Isle of Man |
| · Jersey |
| · Labuan |
| · The STAR trust of the Cayman Islands |
| Section C: Asset protection trusts |
| · Introduction to offshore asset protection trusts |
| · The pre-Insolvency Act 1986 and current position under English law |
| · The Bahamas |
| · The British Virgin Islands (including the new VISTA trust) |
| · The Cayman Islands |
| · The Cook Islands |
| · Cyprus |
| · Gibraltar |
| · The Isle of Man |
| · Jersey |
| Section D: Special issues in international and comparative trust law |
| Part one: |
| · Choice of law; jurisdiction; recognition; enforcement |
| · General principles of choice of law |
| · The Hague Trusts Convention |
| · The jurisdiction and remedies of the English courts over foreign trusts |
| · Recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments in England |
| Part two: |
| · The reception of the trust or trust-like devices in civil law jurisdictions |
| · The trust and the civil law |
| · The trust from a worldwide perspective: The trust’s future |
Sequence:
Section A must be attempted before section B; sections A and B must be attempted before section D. |
Textbook:
John Glasson and Geraint Thomas (eds), The International Trust 2nd ed (Bristol: Jordan Publishing Ltd, 2006), ISBN: 9781846610394 |
Professor Geraint Thomas
Professor of Equity and Property Law, Queen Mary, University of London. LLM study guide author: 'International and comparative trust law'
“I have taught and examined Law for many years both within the University of London and externally. I know at first hand that there is a wealth of talent outside the formal university system and a large unmet need for high-quality legal education worldwide. I also know that the standards set and required by the University of London's External Law programmes are equivalent to those required for its internal Law programmes. Indeed, External study is often more demanding, as it requires higher levels of self-discipline, organisation and self-directed research and analysis.
The study guide for my own course is intended to broaden and deepen your knowledge and understanding of the trust from a worldwide perspective and to develop a comparative understanding of the English trust and the ‘international' trust as it has emerged and developed in offshore jurisdictions. At each stage, the course requires you to raise questions on the nature of the ‘trust' concept, to analyse its essential core elements and how it differs from one jurisdiction to another, and to assess the development of the trust concept worldwide.”
