ARE OR WERE? THE CONTINUING INFLUENCE OF THE SETTLOR.

While traditionally the settlor of a trust falls away after it has been created, increasingly they are seeking to retain some degree of influence over it. The impetus for this can be found in a number of factors, such as the need for supervision over increasingly wide discretions, a sense of attachment to assets that have been settled, fundamental principles of settlor autonomy and the competition between trust jurisdictions seeking to attract clients. The first form of influence examined is that of communicating wishes to trustees, both around the creation of the trust and during its operation. Here it is shown that both forms of communication are considered acceptable for trustees to consider, so long as certain thresholds (such as for a breach of trust or a sham) are not passed in the decision-making process. The second form is that of powers, held either by the settlor or another person chosen by them. The focus here shifts to the question of the fiduciary or personal nature of those powers, given its relevance to the next matter, before finding that there is a significant permitted scope for them, as long as they also do not either conceal a sham or go so far as to deprive the trust of any substance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]