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The Delaware AdvantageAST Capital Trust is chartered under the laws of Delaware, where progressive trust laws encourage wealth formation rather than wealth taxation. This offers many benefits to individuals who wish to preserve the wealth they have created during their lifetime.
Delaware Trust LawAmong the many benefits of Delaware trust law and working with AST Capital Trust, a Delaware-chartered trust company, are these:No state income tax on income accumulated in or capital gains taxes on assets held in an irrevocable trust so long as the beneficiaries resides out-of-state
No intangible personal property tax or sales taxes
No estate taxes on trust property transferred to non-residents
No public record or public filings
No complex accounting
Asset protection from creditors (Click here for an overview of asset protection trusts under Delaware law.) Additionally, Delaware enjoys rigorously enforced spendthrift provisions that prevent creditors of beneficiaries from accessing assets held in trust. Delaware also has a unique statute that prevents a creditor from attaching assets in a properly established Delaware asset protection trust.
Grantor ProtectionDelaware has trust laws giving the grantor of a trust the right to:Veto distributions from the trust
Determine who, other than creditors, will receive trust assets upon the death of the beneficiary
Receive income
Receive principal, subject to an ascertainable standard
Serve as investment advisor to the trust
To obtain these benefits, the trustee must be a Delaware resident or corporate trustee. AST Capital Trust is a Delaware trustee.
Other Delaware ConsiderationsDistribution options. In Delaware, grantors can choose between traditional and modern trust distribution options. AST Capital Trust is comfortable with both the principal and income approach and the total return unitrust approach. (Delaware became the first state in the country to pass a total return unitrust statute in June 2001. It allows many net income trusts transferred from other jurisdictions to be managed for total return rather than income.)
Additional trust advisors. Grantors also can appoint, in addition to a trustee and co-trustee, a trust protector, distribution advisors and others with special powers. AST Capital Trust accepts co-trustee appointments, but also will suggest alternatives that may satisfy your client’s goals.
Investment professionals. Grantors may establish a Delaware trusts wherein he or she designates a specific investment advisor to manage the trust assets in lieu of having the trustee manage the assets. The investment advisor is a fiduciary appointee, and if he or she does not wish to manage the trust assets directly, may hire an investment professional to invest them without interference from the trustee. The investment advisor can choose whether to use modern portfolio theory as an investment guideline for the trust, meaning the trust will seek to maximize risk-adjusted returns, or to structure the trust primarily to generate income.
Dynasty trusts. Finally, in Delaware, grantors are not hindered by the ancient Rule Against Perpetuities. This means your client can decide to create a trust with an unlimited duration, called a dynasty trust, for many reasons, including estate or tax planning.
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