Leading Member SMSF Establishment

About Product

The Leading Member SMSF is an SMSF that focuses on the succession of an SMSF to lineal descendants of the Leading member and the passing of superannuation benefits to lineal descendants via pensions or lump sum distributions.

In addition, the Leading Member controls the Trusteeship of the Fund as well as who the members of the Fund are (generally lineal) and what happens in the event of divorce, dementia or bankruptcy. The Leading Member has the power to deem a person, such as their spouse, as lineal.

For non-lineal requirements, the LightYear standard SMSF should be used.

This document is for a Corporate Trustee structure and new fund establishment. It includes the SMSF Deed only. If you need to establish a corporate trustee for this fund please use the "Leading Member SMSF Special Purpose Corporate Trustee".

This is NOT a variation document. Please use the Leading Member SMSF Deed of Variation to vary an existing SMSF into the Leading Member Structure. We also recommend upgrading an SMSF Special Purpose Corporate Trustee to the Leading Member SMSF Special Purpose Trustee. You can combine both using the Leading Member Kit under the RPA category.

► $229.00 (inc GST) - OR provided under your unlimited membership

► The master document has been signed off by Abbott & Mourly and is congruent with Australian law.

General Information

One of the most important things for a high-net-worth client with sizable SMSF member balances is to provide asset protection and pass their wealth to their lineal descendants.

Benefits

Keeping the Family SMSF Wealth within the lineal descendants just as the English Royal Family does.
Easy to read and understand.
Filled with fantastic strategies.
Written by Australia’s foremost legal, technical and strategic expert, Grant Abbott.
Newly-authored and covers recent SMSF legislation updates.
A legacy product dating 20 years or more.
Signed off by Abbott & Mourly.
Younger members can access older members’ imputation credits to ensure they are not lost.
Corporate Trustee can continue acting as trustee in perpetuity, compared to an individual who can be exposed to death, divorce, etc.
Legal ownership over assets does not have to change when making changes to directors or shareholders, compared to individuals in which you have to change the legal ownership when they change.
Increased asset protection.
From a land registry, unit and share registry perspective, it provides administration simplicity as the company is the only name on the register and if directors come and go, there is no registry change.
Liability which is limited to the assets of the company. Corporate trustees generally hold limited assets and are shell companies.

Frequently Asked Legal Questions

How does it differ from a standard SMSF?

The Leading Member SMSF is based on the LightYear SMSF with the added benefit of limiting Trustees and Members to lineal descendants via the use of a Leading Member. A Leading Member controls the Fund and succession planning for the Leading Member is catered for in the LightYear Leading Member SMSF.

Can my SMSF be upgraded to a Leading Member SMSF?

Absolutely. HOWEVER you will need to use the LightYear Docs Leading Member Deed of Variation product. And there are no issues in relation to resettlement. You will need to plan for who is the Leading Member plus succession in the Leading Membership role. However, if you would like legal advice to that effect, contact our legal team – info@abbottmourly.com.au

How long does this document take to assemble?

Depending on the complexity of the data, this document should take approximately 30-50 secs to assemble. If you experience timing outside of this please contact Support via the Surge app, alternatively please read this article for troubleshooting tips https://info.lightyeardocs.com.au/supportcentre/troubleshooting-longer-assembly-times-timeouts

Is this document a legal document?

All master documents have been signed off by Abbott & Mourly lawyers. Tony Anamourlis of Abbott & Mourly advises that “at no time, due to inbuilt legal protection and security measures can a user change or amend a document on the LightYear Docs platform that has been signed off by a practicing solicitor. To do so would result in the user drafting a document of a legal nature and engaging in the provision of legal services. In addition, it would be a breach of copyright. In our opinion when completing the form fields through the LightYear Docs platform, users and their employees are merely carrying out an administrative task which is not the provision of legal advice.”

However in some complex areas such as the insertion of a varied range of client instructions into a Will or other such documents the user must be mindful of the extent to which a document is being drafted by the user rather than merely the administrative task of completing a form where the relevant fields are inserted into the reviewed and signed legal document provided by Abbott & Mourly.

The above advice is born out of numerous cases dating back to Re Sanderson, Ex parte Law Institute of Victoria [1927] VLR 394, 397 where the Court held:

“if a person does a thing usually done by a solicitor, and does it in such a way as to lead to the reasonable inference that he is a solicitor – if he combines professing to be a solicitor with action usually taken by a solicitor – I think he then does act as a solicitor.”

Likewise in ACCC v Murray (2002) 121 FCR 428, 448 where Murray was building a franchise business that involved the legal writing and drafting of Wills from scratch based on the client’s personal circumstances. The Court held that this process was legal work.

Is the document easy to read?

All LightYear Docs products are written in plain English and assessed for readability. If at any time you come across any errors, please contact support@lightyeardocs.com.au.

What lawyers sign off on the LightYear Docs documents?

All LightYear documents are prepared and signed off by Abbott & Mourly from Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.

Are the LightYear Docs documents reviewed regularly?

All LightYear Docs documents form part of the LightYear Docs internal review process. We review all documents at least annually or when required to do so due to changes in legislation. Further details of this process and a review schedule is include on this website.

Can I get a sample of this document?

Yes, please email support@lightyeardocs.com.au to request a sample document for you to review.