What is the rationale for choosing between a Cook Islands trust and a Nevis trust?
There are some minute legal differences, such as fraudulent transfer limits and duration. IIRC, Cook Islands trusts have been tested more in court than Nevis trusts.
What are some trustworthy yet reasonably priced companies that help with asset protection?
"Reasonably priced" means different things to different people. Creating a trust is a fairly simple process that by itself isn't very expensive usually. It's the upkeep that can get expensive, which depends on how your trust is structured. Price comparisons are almost meaningless, since each one tends to be so bespoke. While you shouldn't be throwing money away, asset protection is only worth it if you have significant assets to protect. So shop around and see what proposals you get.
Sovereign Group, Trident Trust, Asiaciti Trust, Southpac Group, South Dakota Trust Company, Vistra, TMF, ILS. And there plenty of law firms out there that can help, too.
Regardless of the Cook Islands protection, I would think the banking jurisdiction is equally if not more important.
If you have a Cook Islands trust yet bank with it in the EU, US , UK etc... I am assuming it is in reach and can be easily frozen. In that case the most solid plan would be to have a Cook islands trust with a cook islands bank account, however, I wouldn't feel comfortable keeping any significant portion of my money in a sub-par bank on a random island.
Perhaps you came accross better structures? Or at least situations in which other have cook islands trust but bank in for example more respected/protected banking jurisdictions?
What's a better structure? For whom? Under which circumstances? If you have no threats arising from EU, US, or UK, why not bank your trust there?
US has ironclad trusts on home turf and they often bank domestically. Just look into South Dakota trusts (see
The great American tax haven: why the super-rich love South Dakota for starters), which have now spread to lots of states.
The trust arrangements I have seen often bank in the usual financial centers of the world: Singapore, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Isle of Man, Liechtenstein, Hong Kong, US, and so on. Sometimes wherever the trust is formed, Mauritius, Cyprus, Malta, and other places. Have seen a handful of very exotic arrangements. It's very circumstantial and based on the needs of the settlors and beneficiaries.
Plus, I see this as being beneficial for countries that do not apply CFC reporting as there is really no way of them knowing you have the trust. Of course, if someone is a US citizen then good luck with all that reporting and "freedom".
Since trusts are not legal entities, the applicability of CFC is complicated. IIRC, there are cases where the trust itself is not in scope but the beneficiaries and/or settlor can be deemed owning a foreign corporation for their involvement in trusts.
In what situation would you recommend a trust company as the trustee over a individual person as the trustee. Perhaps hiring a trust company gives you more plausible deniability. Anyone have experience with a trust company?
With a trust company, you are less dependent on a single person. Human beings have a nasty habit of dying, being incapacitated, or otherwise be prevented from fulfilling their obligations.
Trust companies are usually regulated, which an individual trustee isn't necessarily (if you pick a family member or friend, for example).
I suppose you should also consider if the choice has any impact on potential legal disputes in other territories (i.e. your place of residence, location of assets, other relevant jurisdiction).
www.icij.org
blakeharrislaw.com
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