A recent Court of Appeal decision in Guernsey, Re B
(2012) has highlighted the issue of trustees' duty of
confidentiality when disclosure of confidential information may be
in the best interests of the trustees. The case raises questions as
to how to balance a trustee's duty of care to the beneficiaries
and the right of a trustee to protect itself when facing serious
harm? Russell Clark, partner at Carey Olsen discusses the law
surrounding confidentiality and how the facts of this case, in
particular, serve to remind trustees and beneficiaries that there
are limits to trustees' to keep certain matters
confidential.
It is well understood that the trustee-beneficiary relationship
is one of confidence. The trustee is obliged to act in the best
interests of the beneficiaries and, accordingly, to keep
information about the beneficiaries and the trust confidential. The
duty of confidentiality however, is not absolute; it does not apply
to information that is generally
