Helping clients with £5m+ to invest or plan with, where specialist expertise, careful coordination and a long-term view are needed.
Some wealth decisions are too important to look at in isolation
Whether you are passing wealth on, setting up a trust, preparing a will, administering an estate or planning for inheritance tax, we can bring the legal, tax, family and investment considerations together.
With joined-up advice, families can make decisions with greater clarity, confidence and piece of mind.
How our specialist services work together
We support you across three connected areas: trust, tax and legal services.
Each service can be used on its own, or brought together when you would benefit from a more joined-up approach. We take time to understand your needs, your family and your wider circumstances, so you receive thoughtful, coordinated advice to help you manage, protect and pass on wealth with care and reassurance.
Trust services
Trusts can provide a clear structure for family wealth, helping to protect assets for future generations, support vulnerable beneficiaries or enable charitable giving.
We work closely with clients and trustees providing professional trustee services, trust administration, governance support and guidance on ongoing responsibilities.
Tax services
Tax is often central to wealth planning, trusts, estates and family succession.
We help individuals, families, trustees and executors understand and manage their tax responsibilities, with compliance, reporting and planning support that fits their wider financial arrangements.
Legal services
Legal support can help give effect to the decisions that matter most to you and your family.
Rathbones Legal Services provides solicitor-led advice and practical support with wills, powers of attorney, probate, trusts, Court of Protection matters, property and landed estates.
Trust and tax services are provided by Rathbones Trust Company. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may change in future. Rathbones Trust Company is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority or the Prudential Regulation Authority.
Legal services are provided by Rathbones Legal Services Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority under SRA number 636409.
Why these services work better together
Trust, tax and legal arrangements are separate areas of expertise, but for many clients the decisions are closely connected.
A Will may shape how wealth passes to family members, charities or trusts, with potential tax, probate and investment implications.
A trust can provide structure and continuity, but it also needs careful legal documentation, trustee decision-making, tax reporting and ongoing administration.
Similarly, a Power of Attorney may be a legal document, but it often forms part of wider later-life planning, family responsibilities and financial decision-making.
An Estate may involve probate, inheritance tax, asset valuations, property matters and sensitive communication with beneficiaries.
Looking at each part separately can make an already complex or emotional situation harder to manage. Bringing them together can provide greater clarity, consistency and control – helping you and your family make decisions with confidence.
When joined-up support may help
You may benefit from connected trust, tax and legal support if you are:
- Considering how best to pass wealth to children, grandchildren or other beneficiaries
- Planning for inheritance tax or long-term family succession
- Creating, reviewing or administering a trust
- Acting as a trustee, executor or attorney
- Preparing or updating a will or power of attorney
- Administering an estate after a death
- Supporting a vulnerable beneficiary or family member
- Managing property, business or investment assets as part of family wealth
- Considering charitable giving or a family philanthropic structure
- Finding it difficult to coordinate several advisers, decisions or responsibilities at once
The benefits for you and your family
Fewer gaps between advice and action
When services are disconnected, important details can be missed between advisers.
By bringing trust, tax and legal expertise together, we help turn advice into action with greater continuity, clearer communication and few gaps along the way.
A clearer view of the whole picture
A tax decision can affect your estate plan. A legal document can shape how assets are managed. A trust can influence family governance, reporting and long-term investment needs.
We help you understand these connections, so decisions are made with clearer context and greater confidence.
More coordinated support for your family
Complex wealth decisions are often about more than money. They can involve family relationships, future responsibilities, personal wishes and sensitive conversations.
We provide calm, structured professional support, helping you and your family make decisions with greater clarity and reassurance - especially when matters feel complex or emotionally sensitive.
Long-term continuity
Trusts, estates and succession plans can last for many years – sometimes across generations.
We help with the immediate decisions, while also supporting the ongoing responsibilities that follow, giving you and your family continuity over the long term.
A joined-up Rathbones relationship
One relationship. Multiple disciplines. Long-term perspective.
Many clients come to Rathbones for investment management or financial planning. Over time, their needs may become broader – from updating a will, or planning for inheritance tax, to creating a trust, supporting elderly parents, administering an estate or helping the next generation understand family wealth.
Because these needs are often connected, we believe clients should be able to access specialist support in a more coordinated way.
This does not mean every client needs every service. It means that when your circumstances call for more than one area of expertise, the right specialists can work together around your needs.
Established heritage
Rathbones’ roots date back to 1742.
Specialist expertise
Support from qualified trust, tax and legal professionals.
Joined-up advice
Services designed to sit alongside investment management and financial planning.
Client-first approach
Practical guidance for families, trustees, executors, charities and professional advisers.
What to expect
When you speak to us, we will start by understanding your circumstances, priorities and what you want to achieve.
We know that decisions about wealth are rarely just financial. They can involve family relationships, personal values, charitable intentions and responsibilities to future generations.
We will then help identify which areas of support may be relevant – whether trust, tax or legal services, wider financial planning or a combination of these.
If a specialist service is not needed, we will say so. Our aim is not to make things more complex, but to help you make important decisions with greater clarity, confidence and reassurance.
Speak to us about your circumstances
Whether you are planning for the next generation, managing trustee or executor responsibilities, reviewing your legal arrangements or considering the tax implications of family wealth, we can help you understand your options and where to start.
Related services
Legal arrangements often work best when they are connected to wider wealth, tax and family planning.
Estate planning
Peace of mind in how pass on your money and assets to children, beneficiaries, dependants and/or causes.