The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), an international association with a 35-year history and 22,000 members worldwide, has launched its operations in Poland! KKG Legal actively supported this initiative by co-organizing Poland’s first STEP conference, which took place on June 12 in Warsaw. Julita Zawadzka, PhD, TEP, a partner at KKG Legal, helped organize the event.
Given the growing public awareness of the need for responsible estate planning and private wealth management, as well as the popularity of trust structures, the number of professionals specializing in these fields is increasing in Poland. STEP was founded specifically with them in mind—to support them in their daily work and in enhancing their professional qualifications, and to build a network of professionals from various jurisdictions who can assist in resolving cross-border issues related to private wealth management.
On June 12, at the Copernicus Science Center in Warsaw, STEP members and supporters from across Europe met with Polish practitioners at the STEP Europe Introductory Conference in Poland to discuss private wealth, succession planning, private foundations, and trust structures, as well as to present the support opportunities that STEP offers to Polish practitioners.
The agenda covered the following topics, including:
- Private Foundations: Asset custodians or business operators?
- Who's in Charge? The practical role of boards of directors, trustees, and wealth managers in trust structures.
- Asset Protection vs. Abuse: the effectiveness of trust structures in the context of international litigation.
- One Structure, Different Jurisdictions: Legislators' varying approaches to the taxation of trust structures.
A dinner was held at the Baczewski Restaurant in Warsaw on June 11, and the conference was held at the Copernicus Science Center on June 12.
We would like to thank Tomasz Krzywański of KORDIA Legal and Aldona Leszczyńska-Mikulska from GWW for their successful collaboration on this initiative, as well as Konrad Osajda for providing academic patronage through the Center for Family Business Law at the University of Warsaw.