A Marriage Made In Heaven: A Foundation Acting As Trustee

I recently assisted a Middle Eastern family who were desirous of creating a trust structure to hold their assets situate outside the Middle East.  The case perfectly illustrated the tension that can exist when trying to create a structure that will be both valid and robust, but at the same time will contain a number of the control mechanisms that families seek.  This family wished to abide by Sharia law in terms of the proportions the spouse and each child should receive.  The patriarch however, wanted to keep his personal and business assets in one structure and not for them to be fragmented on his death, and for the family to enjoy the advantages of having their non-UAE assets held offshore but available to them as they needed them.  Where my advice was particularly required was in relation to the degree to which the patriarch retained ultimate control over the structure.  Too much control over a structure and the robustness, or indeed validity itself, can be