Jennifer Emms

Private Client Partner
Head of Charities

+44 (0)20 7786 8653 jennifer.emms@mtgllp.com LinkedIn Download vCard↓ MTG Recommends

PA: Lauren Franks

+44 (0)20 7786 8712 lauren.franks@mtgllp.com

Very thoughtful and thorough; she leaves no stone left unturned

Chambers & Partners (HNW)

Described as 'fantastic' by legal commentators, Jennifer’s practice spans a range of private wealth and charity law matters as well as commercial trusts.

Jennifer specialises in personal tax and taxation of trusts, Wills, LPAs, succession planning and trust law, alongside disclosure regimes. She has a keen focus on charity law and philanthropy, advising those making donations as well as advising charities in every stage of their lifespan, from inception to winding up. She is experienced in the use of trusts in commercial transactions.

Jennifer is a ‘Leading Individual’ for Charities and Not-for-profit in the latest Legal 500 directory. The guide praises her team’s “depth of knowledge of the charity sector, the involvement of the partners and the speed of the response where needed” and “expert knowledge in the philanthropy space”. She is also listed as a ‘Key Lawyer’ for Art and Cultural Property matters.

Jennifer is also ranked by Chambers & Partners (HNW) for her expertise in Private Wealth law, which notes “Jennifer is certainly a rising star, impressive on international private wealth structuring” and describes her as “very thoughtful and thorough… leaves no stone left unturned”. She is named in the 2024 Private Client Global Elite directory, and was shortlisted for the 2021 Spear’s Future Leader in Private Client Services award and for ‘Rising Star’ at the Chambers High Net Worth Awards 2022. Jennifer was also named in the Who’s Who Legal 2023 Private Client report as a Recommended lawyer.

Jennifer acts for HNW and UHNW individuals and families. Some of her clients are UK centric whilst others are international with complex personal and business interests across multiple jurisdictions. Her clients also include professional trustees, companies, financial institutions and a number of different types of charity from trusts to royal charter companies. Having been seconded to a large youth charity early in her career, Jennifer understands and is highly familiar with the day-to-day issues that arise in a charitable context.

Jennifer trained and qualified at Linklaters LLP in March 2010 and moved to Maurice Turnor Gardner in 2015. She was recognised as one of eprivateclient’s Top 35 under 35 in 2018 and 2019.

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Expertise

Jennifer regularly provides advice to individuals who are relocating to/from the UK, including pre-arrival planning and advising on the application of the statutory residence test, non-UK domiciliary status and the remittance basis.

As well as setting up trust structures, Jennifer has expertise in assisting with their ongoing operation, including amending their terms, making distributions, retirements and appointments of trustees and the disclosure of trust documents as well as their UK tax treatment.

Jennifer has a broad private wealth practice and her experience includes:

Providing advice on the methods for holding UK property (for new purchasers and “de-enveloping” existing structures) factoring in tax and other considerations such as confidentiality.
Advising individuals on their UK inheritance tax exposure.
Understanding a family’s aims and considering their preferred route of passing on wealth.
Advising settlors, trustees and beneficiaries of various offshore trusts on their UK tax consequences, including the making of distributions and provision of benefits.
Advising on the taxation of share options granted to an individual moving to work in the UK.
Advising on the application of disclosure and transparency regimes including CRS, DAC6 and the trusts register to various clients’ asset holding structures.

Jennifer has established grant-making and operational charities with varied aims, as well as advising on the alternative ‘donor advised fund’ structure. Charity trustees have consulted her on matters ranging from trustee duties, governance, grant agreements, investments, safeguarding and delegation to constitutional amendments.

Jennifer is cognisant of the UK tax and cross-border aspects of charitable giving and she advises prospective donors.

Jennifer’s experience includes:

Leading the legal team for a former trustee of the Kids Company charity in High Court proceedings brought by the Official Receiver seeking to disqualify them. The trustees were successfully exonerated in one of the biggest, high profile cases in the charity sector in recent years.
Advising philanthropists wishing to establish grant-making and operational charities (such as an educational facility); recommending the most appropriate legal structure, drafting the constitution and registering with the Charity Commission.
Advising on gift aid, legacies and charity tax reliefs.
Carrying out general “health checks” of charities, their processes and governance, preparing handbooks and advising on policies, including safeguarding and conflicts of interest.
Advising charities on regulatory engagement with the Commission, including serious incident reporting, addressing concerns raised by the regulator and the statutory inquiry process.
Advising charities and retailers on the legal regime that applies when sales of products or services are linked to charity fundraising, including advising on a sale of NFTs to raise money for charity.
Advising UK-based charities on expanding their activities overseas and making grants overseas.

Jennifer’s commercial, magic circle background and knowledge of charity law as well as international private wealth issues make her well equipped to advise in respect of this unique asset class and the range of issues it can generate.

Jennifer has spoken at Institute of Art and Law seminars and contributed to a chapter in Norman Palmer’s Art Loans text.

Jennifer’s experience includes:

Drafting terms and conditions for the donation of a significant art collection and funds to a charitable institution. This included both short term requirements (such as the requirements for shipping and licences) and long term requirements, such as the display and preservation of the collection and naming rights.
Negotiating a settlement following the destruction of artwork which, in the absence of a written contract, included analysing when title passed, agency and insurance terms.
Acting for the UK charity beneficiary of the estate of a deceased artist, whose Will established discretionary trusts, and resolving the brewing dispute without formal proceedings.
Advising on the structuring of family assets, which included artwork, using overseas trusts and companies and considering retention of control by the family.
Advising on the sale of artwork at auction to raise funds for a named charity and the application of the commercial participation regime.
Acting on the acquisition of a publishing group and intellectual property rights owned by the executors of a deceased’s estate and a registered charity.

Jennifer has worked on a range of different corporate and finance transactions involving trusts, including securitisations, energy decommissioning funds and an Islamic ‘bond’ issue. These sometimes raise unusual and complex trust law questions on which Jennifer has advised, as well as addressing the tax consequences.

Jennifer’s experience includes:

Establishing trusts to ‘orphan’ special purpose vehicles, including drafting trust documentation and providing tax and charity law advice.
Advising on the application of the inheritance tax settlements legislation to escrow arrangements, which are commonly used in corporate transactions.
Providing advice on sales of companies and businesses involving a trustee purchaser or seller, including advising on the appropriate warranties to be included.
In the context of the multi-jurisdictional insolvency of a bond issuer and guarantor company, advising on the construction of historic, uncertain bond trust documentation and the subsequent UK tax consequences and liaising with HMRC to agree the same.