Asset Protection

Trusted Asset Protection Legal Services on the Sunshine Coast

At Argon Law, we are here to help address your enquiries concerning asset protection across various topics. Having supported our Sunshine Coast clients to protect their assets and wealth for more than a decade, we can provide personalised guidance in ownership structures, business succession, discretionary and family trusts, testamentary trusts, family loans, enduring powers of attorney, and conflict avoidance strategies.

Business succession. Here at Argon Law we like it. Most business owners hate it. It's true, navigating all the options is tricky, but that's where your lawyer and accountant can help.

Of all of Australia's family and private businesses, only a third have succession plans, which means a huge amount of business value is being lost. A successful transition to new ownership and, potentially, new management, requires time and planning.

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Before you acquire a property, a business or some other asset it is wise to consider the legal structure you will use to own it. At Argon Law, we help clients set up companies and trusts before they purchase assets or begin business ventures. This is to ensure those new assets are kept legally separate from their home and other existing assets, thereby protecting them from debts and other problems which may arise in respect of the new assets. We can suggest and implement different asset protection strategies for business and property owners.

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Family or discretionary trusts are commonly used to hold investment and business assets including real estate. Such structures allow the profits generated by such assets to be distributed amongst family members and related entities in a manner that enables the family group to reduce its overall tax costs. We often advise clients about whether such structures are suitable for them and provide the trust deeds and other items necessary to establish them.

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If you are thinking about doing a new will, a testamentary trust in your will may be something to consider. A testamentary trust is simply a trust established under a will which does not come in to existence until the will maker dies. There are both tax and asset protection advantages to testamentary trusts.

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It is very common for people to loan out money to family or friends. Although they never really take consideration of the security of these loans.

If you do not take security and your borrower goes bankrupt, you may find that your borrower has many other creditors with whom you have to share their assets, resulting in the loss of family money.

This tragic situation can be avoided or minimised by putting in place relatively simple legal documentation up front and registering it in the appropriate place. It is in the interests of all parties to inter-family loans to make sure this happens.

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Quite often people appoint a family member as their enduring power of attorney. It may be a spouse, a partner, or one of their children. Whilst this is common practice, it can create difficulties if you do not understand the restrictions that the law places on attorneys in respect of certain decisions.

If you were to become incapacitated, a family member can be restricted from using your share of the family home to buy a new property to help with your care if they are going to live in it. They may also be restricted from purchasing your assets, to keep them 'in the family', even if they have the means and desire to do so.

But the good news is that such conflict actions are not illegal where they are specifically authorised.

Through the careful drafting of an enduring power of attorney you can avoid such problems.

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What is Asset Protection and Why does it Matter?

Asset protection refers to the legal strategies and structures put in place to safeguard your assets from potential threats. In a climate marked by increasing interest rates on home and business loans along with the ever-rising cost of living, safeguarding your assets has never been more crucial.

It is important to seek legal advice when looking to acquire new assets or when restructuring your existing ones to mitigate potential risks. This can be done by firstly ensuring the separation and protection of both your personal and business affairs from potential threats.

What You Should Consider Prior to a Property, Business, or Asset Acquisition

When contemplating the legal framework for your business or asset on the Sunshine Coast, it's vital to consider elements such as taxation, liability to creditors, and profit distribution.

The most employed legal structures include sole proprietorship, partnership, company, and trust. Each structure comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages. We can guide you through these intricacies, especially in establishing a trust, enabling you to make well-informed choices about protecting your assets.

Our mission at Argon Law is to support our Sunshine Coast clients protect their wealth through the best possible Asset Protection services and strategies. If you’d like to begin safeguarding your assets, get in touch with our experienced team who will be able to help provide the right asset protection strategy for you and your situation.