Private Client analysis: In its judgment in Cohen & Crooks as Joint Administrators of the Estate of James Donald Hanson & Anor v Arbitrage Research and Trading S.A. & Ors, the Royal Court of Jersey has made findings of fraud against the former trustee of a Jersey trust. The Royal Court has also revisited the test for determining whether a trust is a sham and also considered, for the first time, when it might be appropriate to exercise its statutory jurisdiction to save a trust which is wholly or partially unlawful. Written by Nick Williams, James Angus and Matthew Davies of Ogier, Jersey.

For general information about Jersey, see Spitz & Clarke Offshore Service: Jersey [JER.1]. What is a Jersey foundation? The foundation is a civil law concept and is a creature of statute under Jersey law introduced by the Foundations (Jersey) Law 2009 (Law). A foundation can best be described as a hybrid having the characteristics of a company, but operating for a similar purpose to that of a trust. It is similar to a company in that it has separate legal personality and has a council to administer its business, just like a board of directors. However, unlike a company, a foundation does not have shareholders and, unlike a trust, there are no beneficiaries who have an interest in the foundation’s assets or who are owed a fiduciary duty. Consequently, a foundation does not have any owners and is regarded as an ‘orphan entity’. Use of foundations A Jersey foundation can be utilised for virtually any legal purpose, save for two which are specific to Jersey’s public policy and jurisprudence. Typical uses of foundations include: Asset protection/succession

The government of Jersey has launched a consultation on amendments to the Trusts (Jersey) Law 1984 following recent court decisions dealing with issues of import to the trusts industry in Jersey. The consultation is divided into five areas. Subject to the responses, the government of Jersey intends to bring forward legislation on the amendments for adoption during the course of 2024. Responses should be submitted by Friday 16 August 2024.

NOTE—to see whether notification thresholds in Jersey and throughout the world are met, see further: Where to Notify. 1. Have there been any recent developments regarding the merger control regime in Jersey and are any updates or developments expected in the coming year? Are there any other ‘hot’ merger control issues in Jersey? The primary legislation, the Competition (Jersey) Law 2005 (the Law) was amended with effect from 1 May 2026. The Competition (Mergers and Acquisitions) (Jersey) Order 2010 (the Mergers Order) remains in force until 1 November 2026. From that date, the Competition (Mergers and Acquisitions) (Jersey) Order 2026 introduces mandatory thresholds of at least £5m aggregate Jersey turnover and at least £2m Jersey turnover for each of at least two undertakings concerned, calculated for the preceding financial year, and below-threshold call-in powers (see question 7). The proposals outlined below are historical. On 21 February 2023, the Government of Jersey conducted a public consultation which closed on 21 April 2023 to seek feedback on several proposals to amend and update Jersey’s competition legislation. The consultation process involved

This is a property holding trust. The key features are: • they are constituted by trust instruments under Jersey law • the legal person or persons are the trustees, ie the persons who will enter into documents as the property owner • the trust fund comprises the capital assets, eg the property, but does not include the income earned for the property • the entitlement of the beneficiaries of the trust is unitised, meaning that investors own securities (units) which are transferable and which represent an entitlement in the trust fund • a register is maintained in Jersey of each unitholder’s number and class of units in the same way that a share register is maintained for a company—the register is not public

Private Client analysis: Christopher Scholefield, corporate law partner, and Alex Crockart, trainee English solicitor explore the recent developments to the revenue rule in Jersey courts.

For general information on Jersey, see: Spitz & Clarke Offshore Service: Jersey: Commentary: General information. For information on Jersey cases, laws and other legal matters, see: Jersey Legal Information Board. Legal framework The legal framework for Jersey law governed trusts is found in the Trusts (Jersey) Law 1984 (as amended) (Law) together with a considerable amount of judicial precedent. Whilst judicial authority from England, and other common law jurisdictions, can be highly persuasive in Jersey, the Jersey Courts have often internationally led the way with their judgments on matters of trust law which, in turn, have become highly persuasive elsewhere. Pursuant to the Law, Jersey trusts: • can be established to benefit persons or classes of persons and/or charitable and non-charitable purposes • can last indefinitely • can provide for a third party’s consent to be required before a trustee exercises its power or discretion (ie a protector) and has established case law on when such persons can be removed • can provide for the settlor or third parties to have reserved powers including, for example, the appointment of

Private Client analysis: Oliver Passmore, advocate and managing associate at Ogier, explores the decision in R Trust and draws attention to the difficulties of interpreting article 9 of the Trusts (Jersey) Law 1984—otherwise known as the firewall provision.

Loan market and developments Please provide a brief overview of the current state of the loan markets in your jurisdiction and any significant recent market developments. Lending from Jersey banks tends to be limited to transactions involving local real estate or local businesses or in the context of private banking to global high net worth individuals. We see large volumes of lending from UK and European banks to Jersey structures which primarily hold non-Jersey situs assets including UK real estate. Please provide a brief overview of forthcoming changes to the law or other matters that may affect the loan markets or the responses to the questions below. The Security Interests (Jersey) Law 2012 (which came into force on 2 January 2014) (the SIJL) brought about wholesale changes to the way security is created in respect of intangible moveable property in Jersey (such as shares in a Jersey company, units in a Jersey property unit trust and bank accounts situate in Jersey). The key points to note are: • the SIJL provides for creation of security by way

A clause in a lease or tenancy agreement which allows the landlord to serve a notice on a tenant to carry out repairs. Where a tenant fails to do so, the landlord may enter, carry out the works itself and recover the costs from the tenant as a debt.

Law360, London: A group of all-risks insurers told the High Court on 4 February 2025 that losses linked to planes stranded in Russia after the invasion of Ukraine should be covered by war-risks insurers because they were a result of Russian counter-measures amid an 'economic war'.

Items thrown over the side of a ship in danger of foundering.