Jun 11, 2026 – 5.00amThe power of discretionary trusts to protect assets even from the beneficiaries they were set up to serve was reinforced this month in a judgment of the NSW appeals court.The case pitted a parent who gave away much of his wealth to his son by putting him in charge of two discretionary trusts with assets worth $10 million in 2019.Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Andrew HobbsWealth reporterAndrew Hobbs covers self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs), financial planning, retirement, inheritance, tax, personal finance and, sometimes, the Perth Bears. He has been a financial journalist for 30 years, previously at Bloomberg and AAP.Fetching latest articles
$10m lesson on why not to give your kids control of a family trust
A Shakespearean battle with his son ended in disaster for retired pharmacist John McLennan while underlining the asset protection power of discretionary trusts.














