Client verification Current

Verifying a trust's structure and trustees

A practical approach to checking a trust's structure is what it's said to be.

A trust deed tells you what a trust's structure is meant to be; verification is confirming that's what it actually is right now. This guide sets out a practical approach. It is general information, not legal or compliance advice.

Action plan

1 Confirm the deed reflects the current structure Check for later deeds of variation that might have changed the structure since the original deed.

A trust deed can be varied after it's first executed. Ask directly whether any deed of variation exists and request it, so you're working from the trust's current structure, not an outdated version of it.

  • Ask whether any deed of variation has been executed since the original trust deed
  • Request and review any variation alongside the original deed
  • Confirm you're working from the trust's current, not historical, structure

Done when: The trust deed reviewed reflects the trust's current structure, including any variations

2 Verify the trustee independently Identify and verify the trustee the same way you would verify that kind of client on its own.

Verify the trustee using the same independent verification approach you'd use for that kind of client standing alone: identity document verification for an individual trustee, or public register verification for a corporate trustee.

  • Verify an individual trustee's identity against independent and reliable data
  • Verify a corporate trustee's registration against the public register
  • Confirm the trustee named in the deed matches who you've verified

Done when: The trustee has been independently verified consistent with their type

See verifying a client's identity documents against a reliable source
3 Check who currently has authority under the deed Confirm the person instructing you is actually the current trustee under the deed's own terms.

Trust deeds generally set out how a trustee is appointed or removed. Before relying on instructions, confirm the person or entity instructing you is genuinely the current trustee under the deed's own appointment provisions, not a prior or proposed trustee.

  • Check the deed's appointment and removal provisions
  • Confirm the instructing party is the current trustee under those provisions
  • Document the basis for that confirmation

Done when: The instructing party's current trustee authority has been confirmed and documented