California Foreign Asset Protection Attorney, Sebastian Gibson
Asset Protection - Offshore Asset Protection and Foreign Jurisdictions
If you’ve been searching for California asset protection lawyers or offshore asset protection attorneys in California and haven’t found the asset protection attorney in which you can be confident when retaining a lawyer for your asset protection, voluntary disclosure, offshore trust protection and family limited partnership matters in California, Sebastian Gibson is the asset protection attorney you’ve been looking for.
California Asset Protection Lawyer
With over thirty years of experience handling international matters, with law degrees in both California and in Great Britain, and years of international experience in London as well as decades of experience in California, California asset protection lawyer Sebastian Gibson brings a wealth of experience to the table and was chosen one of the 2011 Top Lawyers by Palm Springs Life Magazine.
In providing offshore asset protection advice, some of the most important aspects of foreign jurisdictions which people need to look for in an offshore jurisdiction are strong asset protection laws that are pro-debtor and anti-creditor, a history of a strong and sound political, legal, social and economic history, no taxes on foreign capital, no exchange controls and financial privacy, even while being completely U.S. tax compliant.
It is not enough to choose a foreign jurisdiction that has a short statute of limitations. One should also ideally choose a jurisdiction that won’t recognize or enforce a foreign civil judgment, and thus which will require a litigant to retry their case. The foreign jurisdiction should also have a high burden of proof, a rigid standard of proof, and not allow assets to be frozen prior to a creditor obtaining a judgment.
Some of the most popular jurisdictions for foreign trusts are, in alphabetical order, and not in order of preference, Anguilla, Antigua, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cook Islands, Cyprus, Gibralter, Guernsey, Isle of Mann, Jersey, Liechtenstein, Malta, the Marianas, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Montserrat, Nevis, Seychelles, Trinidad, and Turks & Caicos Islands.
The Cook Islands has a long history providing for offshore trusts. One key feature of the Cook Islands Trusts Act is that it allows for spendthrift trusts. Similar trust laws have been implemented in other jurisdictions, but not all provide the same protections, such as a shortened statute of limitations and raising the burden of proof in the Cook Islands courts. A creditor must also prove any fraudulent transfer was made with the specific intent to avoid a creditor’s claim.
While the Cook Islands have a long history of providing a friendly jurisdiction to offshore trusts, a British common law tradition, English as their primary language and a modern banking industry, other jurisdictions with a shorter history of protecting offshore trusts, and a smaller banking industry such as Nevis, have still become popular jurisdictions for offshore trusts. With LLC legislation modeled after Delaware, Nevis has become a popular offshore jurisdiction for the formation of LLC’s. In Nevis, a creditor must even post a $25,000 bond to cover the defendant’s legal fees before a creditor can commence litigation.
Most creditors who choose to attack an offshore trust in a foreign jurisdiction do so on the basis that the transfer of assets to them were fraudulent transfers or conveyances. The statutes of limitations in foreign jurisdictions are thus extremely important. In the Cook Islands, the statute is at most, two years after the creditor’s cause of action accrued. The Bahamas, Cyprus and Nevis as well also require that the action in their jurisdiction must be commenced within two years of the transfer of assets to the trust. The Cayman Islands and Bermuda on the other hand have a six-year statute of limitations from the date of the transfer of assets. Other jurisdictions such as Belize, Gibralter and the Turks and Caicos Islands don’t stipulate any limitations period.
Another important factor in offshore asset protection is the burden of proof required in a foreign jurisdiction a creditor must meet in order to prevail. In the Cook Islands and Nevis, a creditor must prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt (the criminal standard of proof in the U.S.) that the trust was set up with the specific intent to defraud the creditor bringing the action.
Many offshore trusts are formed in foreign jurisdictions such as the Cook Islands but deposit their trust assets in countries such as Switzerland and Liechtenstein where the banking industry is larger and more established. It is thought to be safest though if the jurisdiction in which the foreign trust is set up actually holds the physical assets of the trust.
To qualify as an international trust in the Cook Islands, the trust must be registered and have a trustee that is a Cook Islands trustee company, a Cook Islands international company or a Cook Islands foreign company.
While the Cook Islands are politically stable, English speaking and associated with New Zealand, not all foreign jurisdictions are equally stable politically, economically or socially. While Nevis, for instance, along with Saint Kitts forms the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis, a major issue in the elections are whether Nevis should undergo constitutional reform or whether the population will prefer secession when a choice is presented to the electorate. Nevis is thus currently undergoing somewhat of a constitutional re-evaluation by the legislature and will eventually be determined by the voters.
In compliance with IRS requirements, we must advise you that any U.S. federal tax advice or offshore asset protection recommendations contained in this informational article are not intended to be used nor is it published in order for it to be used and you may not use it for the purpose of avoiding penalties or fines under the Internal Revenue Code. The offshore asset protection advice contained herein is not intended to be used nor is it being published in order to promote, market or recommend any specific transaction, tax-related matter or estate planning tax scheme to any party.
California Asset Protection Attorney, Sebastian Gibson
Sought out to be a writer for California’s two largest and most prestigious legal newspapers, California asset protection attorney Sebastian Gibson’s articles have been published in the Los Angeles Daily Journal and the San Francisco Daily Journal. Today thousands and thousands of people visit this website and his blogs monthly for useful advice and thousands more follow him on Twitter for his humor.
One of the best asset protection attorneys for people in California to follow for his humor and wit, one of the funniest California asset protection lawyers as well as one of the top humorous California asset protection attorneys people follow on Twitter, California asset protection attorney Sebastian Gibson has been called "brilliant," "hilariously funny" and a "legend."
It matters more than you think who you call for your asset protection and other legal matters. When it matters most, call California asset protection lawyer Sebastian Gibson. When it’s time to hire a California asset protection attorney, hire a legend.
