Pete Murrin
Pete advises clients on estate and succession planning, the formation and administration of trusts, taxation of trusts and estates, personal and commercial succession of family businesses, the preparation of Wills, adults with incapacity, and international inheritance and succession matters for high-net-worth clients. He has particular expertise in dealing with contentious trust, estate (testate and intestate) and pension death benefits matters for individual and business clients. Pete also has considerable experience in the field of Trust formation and administration generally and Personal Injury Trusts specifically.
He is a member of the Society of Trust and the Estate Practitioners and accredited by the Law Society of Scotland as a specialist in Trusts Law and Private Client Tax, and by the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners as a TEP.
Practice Area
Panel
- Scottish Panel
Qualified Year
- 2010
Experience
- Turcan Connell (Feb 2019 - Present)
- Lindsays (2016 - 2019)
- Maclay Murray & Spens LLP (now Dentons) (2008 - 2016)
Membership
- Law Society of Scotland
- Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners
- Merchants House of Glasgow
Qualifications
- TEP, Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners (2014)
- Accredited Specialist in Trusts Law, Law Society of Scotland (2016)
- Accredited Specialist in Private Client Tax, Law Society of Scotland (2016)
Education
- Glasgow Graduate School of Law (2007-2008)
- Glasgow University (LLB - Distinction) (2005-2007)
6 Contributions by Pete Murrin
PRACTICE NOTES
Appointment, assumption, resignation and removal of trustees in Scotland: procedures, transfer of title, court powers and compliance under the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 and Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921
FORTHCOMING CHANGE :
The Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 obtained Royal Assent on 30 January 2024, signalling the first major review of Scottish trusts law in over a century, since the foundational Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921. The trusts-related provisions will only take effect once Scottish Ministers bring forward the necessary secondary legislation, whereas certain measures on succession commenced on 30 April 2024. Key updates aimed at modernising the framework are summarised in News Analysis: Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill passed. Practice Notes covering Scottish trusts and succession will be updated further to reflect this new legislation...
Appointment as trustee in Will or deed
In practice, trustees are appointed (or nominated) in the relevant deed of trust. For Will trusts (or mortis causa settlements), the trust deed is, or is derived from, the deceased’s Will. An appointment only takes effect once the nominee accepts the role, either expressly or by implication. Under the majority of Scottish trust deeds, those nominated as trustees are individuals or legal persons, identified by name and address as at the date the deed is executed...
Private Client
PRACTICE NOTES
Personal injury trusts in Scotland: set-up, trusteeship, benefits and care disregards, tax, periodical payments and key practice points, with update on the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024.
FORTHCOMING CHANGE :
The Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 obtained Royal Assent on 30 January 2024, representing the first substantive review of trusts law in Scotland in more than a century since the principal statute, the Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921, was enacted. The trusts provisions will commence only once Scottish Ministers make the required secondary legislation, whereas some succession measures took effect on 30 April 2024. The core updates designed to modernise the law are set out in News Analysis: Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill passed. Practice Notes covering Scottish trusts and succession will be further revised to reflect this new legislation.
What is a Personal Injury (‘PI’) trust?
A PI trust is:
any type of lawful trust arrangement
that ring-fences sums paid as a result of personal injury to the injured individual
for the injured person’s benefit
A PI trust is characterised by the source of the trust assets and the beneficiary. Accordingly, a trust that holds payments arising from a fatal injury for the dependants of a deceased injured person does not fall within the scope of a PI trust...
Private Client
PRACTICE NOTES
Scotland: Trustee powers (including investment), duties, decision-making, court powers, advances, remuneration and liability; current law and reforms under the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024
FORTHCOMING CHANGE :
On 30 January 2024, the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 obtained Royal Assent, representing the first significant review of trusts law in Scotland in more than a century since the principal Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921. Provisions concerning trusts will commence only when Scottish Ministers introduce the necessary secondary legislation, whereas certain succession provisions came into force on 30 April 2024. The main reforms aimed at modernising the law are outlined in News Analysis: Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill passed. Practice Notes covering aspects of Scottish trusts and succession law will be further updated to align with this new legislation. At the outset, note that powers authorise trustees to act and advance the trust purposes, while duties oblige trustees to discharge an obligation.
Source of trustees’ powers
Trustees derive their authority from both the prevailing law and the relevant deed of trust. Their powers arise from a body of statutory measures, including:
Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921 (T(S)A 1921)
Trusts (Scotland) Act 1961 (T(S)A 1961)
Trustee Investments Act 1961
Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 (CTI(S)A 2005)
These sources collectively underpin the scope of trustees’ powers in practice...
Private Client
PRACTICE NOTES
Scottish discretionary trusts: creation, trustees, beneficiaries, income and capital, tax, powers, failure of purposes, special regimes, and forthcoming reforms under the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024
FORTHCOMING CHANGE :
The Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 obtained Royal Assent on 30 January 2024, representing the first overhaul of Scottish trusts law in more than a century since the Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921. The trusts elements will only commence once Scottish Ministers make the necessary secondary legislation to bring them into force, while certain succession provisions took effect on 30 April 2024. A summary of the key reforms aimed at modernising the framework appears in News Analysis: Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill passed. Practice Notes covering Scottish trusts and succession topics will be updated further to align with this new legislation.
What is a discretionary trust?
A discretionary trust or discretionary settlement arises where a person—or persons—(traditionally termed the truster or trusters in Scots law, though the English terminology of ‘settlor(s)’ is becoming more commonly adopted) transfers or settles property on trustees, to be held for the benefit of one or more of a group of designed potential beneficiaries. A properly constituted trust must have clearly articulated trust purposes—those purposes are often cast in general terms, for example, ‘to manage, hold and apply the trust fund until the vesting day’...
Private Client
PRACTICE NOTES
Scottish liferent (interest in possession) trusts: creation and administration, income v capital, proper liferent distinction, IHT, alimentary/protective liferents, apportionment, and Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 reforms
FORTHCOMING CHANGE :
The Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 obtained Royal Assent on 30 January 2024, signalling the first significant reassessment of Scottish trusts law in more than a century since the foundational Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921. The trusts provisions will only commence once Scottish Ministers introduce the requisite secondary legislation, whereas certain succession provisions took effect on 30 April 2024. The key updates designed to modernise the regime are outlined in News Analysis: Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill passed. Practice Notes covering aspects of Scottish trusts and succession law will be further revised to reflect this new legislation...
Liferent trusts
A liferent trust is a vehicle that, once established, grants a beneficiary or beneficiaries the right to use the trust property and to receive its income. The individual benefiting from the use or fruits of the trust property is termed the liferenter. Liferent trusts are also sometimes known as interest in possession (IIP) trusts or life interest trusts (the preferred English terminology)—see Practice Note: Creation of trusts—life interest trusts...
Private Client
PRACTICE NOTES
Scottish trusts for vulnerable beneficiaries: qualifying conditions, creation, drafting, taxation (IHT, income tax, CGT), VPE election, and practical considerations for bereaved minors and disabled persons
FORTHCOMING CHANGE :
The Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 received Royal Assent on 30 January 2024, delivering the first overhaul of Scottish trusts law in over 100 years since the Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921. Provisions on trusts require commencement by secondary legislation from Scottish Ministers, while certain succession measures took effect on 30 April 2024. The principal updates to modernise the framework are outlined in News Analysis: Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill passed. Practice Notes covering Scottish trusts and succession will be further revised to reflect this new legislation.
What is a trust for (or with) a vulnerable beneficiary?
A trust for a vulnerable beneficiary falls into one of two types:
a disabled person's trust; or
a trust for a bereaved minor (referred to as ‘relevant minors’ in statutory provision)
Where a trust satisfies both sets of conditions, it is treated as a disabled person's trust, allowing it to continue after the beneficiary attains legal majority. What often sets such trusts apart is their purpose. They are commonly viewed as administrative. The focus...
Private Client
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