The Guernsey States of Deliberation and Royal Court have progressed major statutory amendments to the Trusts (Guernsey) Law 2007, alongside judicial guidance regarding "insolvent trusts".
- Fiduciary Presumption on Reserved Powers: Section 15 of the Guernsey Trusts Law will be reversed so that reserved powers held by settlors or protectors are presumptively fiduciary unless explicitly stated otherwise.
- Restoration of Hastings-Bass: The reforms restore a flexible Hastings-Bass remedial jurisdiction, permitting courts to set aside flawed fiduciary decisions without requiring proof of an underlying breach of fiduciary duty.
- Insolvent Trust Cash-Flow Test: Guernsey authorities have adopted the Jersey cash-flow framework (In the Matter of the Z Trust). Once a trust fund becomes insufficient to meet properly incurred trustee liabilities, the beneficiaries are deemed "out of the money", shifting the trustee’s primary duty toward the body of trust creditors.
- Sources: Read Babbe’s Guernsey Trust Law Reform Breakdown and Bedell Cristin’s Guernsey Insolvent Trusts Briefing.
Guernsey: Major Statutory Trusts Overhaul & Insolvent Trust Guidance