David Cooney

Practice Areas

David specialises in complicated wealth-planning structures covering multiple jurisdictions in Walkers' Private Capital & Trusts practice group.

He primarily focuses on advising trustees and settlors (or their family offices) on private client structures with British Virgin Islands, Cayman or Guernsey connections. He also helps clients with foundation, trust and company structures to hold crypto-currency assets.

David advises trustees, high-net worth individuals and families, family offices and charitable organisations using trust, foundation and private trust company structures to protect assets and for succession planning.

David is a UK Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA), and a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP). He has over 20 years’ experience in private practice in Guernsey, Switzerland, England and the Cayman Islands. David has been on the STEP Council in the UK, Cayman Islands, Switzerland and Guernsey.

*not admitted in Guernsey and not a member of Walkers (Guernsey) LLP

Professional Memberships

- Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP)

- Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT)

- STEP Guernsey Committee Member

- Solicitors Regulation Authority

Publications

Co-author of Crypto Assets in Trusts and Foundations, Guernsey Chapter, Globe Law (ISBN: 9781787429888)

Work Highlights

David's recent representative experience includes:

- Advising a trustee on a major multi-trust restructuring involving US$5bn+ of assets for US-based billionaire with assets spanning 15 countries.

- Acting on the establishment of multiple Cayman law governed trusts with an asset value estimated at US$2.1bn for an ultra-high net worth individual.

- Advising Guernsey trustee in relation to a significant crypto asset holding structure, restructured as a result of UK tax changes.

- Acting as a lead counsel of the establishment of a Swiss-connected offshore trust structure for an ultra-high net worth individual for investment protection treaty purposes.

- Advising a trustee on the settlement a very complicated and long running matter in relation to the possible liability for UK tax losses caused by its actions.

- Advising a large multi-jurisdictional trust company in relation to multiple trusts for one of their biggest clients.

- Advising a private trust company on the Guernsey law aspects of a structure established for a UK based non-dom entrepreneur.

- Advising the trustee of a significant philanthropic trust (established as a Cayman Islands STAR trust) on the funding of the trust and on the establishment of the first philanthropic projects within the trust.

Experience

Before joining Walkers in 2022, David worked for another offshore firm in Guernsey. Before that he was a partner with Charles Russell Speechlys in Zurich, and an offshore firm in the Cayman Islands, where he was head of the Private Client and Trusts Team for the Caribbean region.

David trained and qualified as an English solicitor, and worked for leading regional firms in the UK before moving offshore.