J02 Study Plan (September Sitting) 

Are you ready to get going with your J02 studies?

Understanding the best way for you to study will help you plan when and where to study and how to make the most of your time.

Use this week to order your study guide, join the J02 Forum and plan your own personal study plan. Once you have your study guide, use this week to ready through the welcome pages.

You will then be ready to kick start your J02 studies with Chapter 1 from next week (or sooner if you are chomping at the bit!).

Time to open up the BTS study guide and dive into Chapter 1.

In this chapter we'll look at what a trust actually is, law, the different parties of a rust, why a trust might be used and pros and cons. 

Now you've had an introduction to the basics of a trust, let's consider how to go about setting a trust up.

Lots of rules to consider here, not to mention some trust terminology to get our heads around.

Do think about how best to plan your studies with the festive break looming. How much study will you be able to achieve during this time and do you need to factor this in to the weeks either side of Christmas?

Chapter 3, so you've got the trust set up - now what? 

We'll look at the importance of the Trust Act 2000, variations of trusts, charitable trusts and and offshore positions.

In Chapter 4, we'll think about what's involved when making a decision for someone else. We'll cover POAs, the Court of Protection, the Office of Public Guardian and Mental Health Acts.

Are you on track? Let's look at the TWO chapters we'll be covering this week...

Chapter 5: What happens if a Will needs to be changed after death? We'll look at this and also the role of an executor/administrator, IHT considerations and regional rules such as how Scotland and Northern Ireland have rules that differ to the rest of the UK.

Chapter 6: A smaller chapter but still an important area to cover. What impact does bankruptcy have when it comes to trusts?

Chapter 6 - probably one of the meatiest chapters of this unit!

Taxation on the way in, during and perhaps on the way out. We also need to look at who is responsible for paying the various taxes.

This chapter will recap on why a trust might be in place as well as look at the mechanics of holding certain asset types within a trust. 

From the type of trust, to IHT liabilities to who will manage the trust, we'll look at all of the points that need to be considered when it comes to setting up and using a trust.

By this stage you should have completed your initial study of the J02 study guide. Now is the time to start applying what you have learnt to mock exam questions.

You can access free past papers from the CII website on the J02 pages - they call them 'Examination Guides'. The most recent ones are also available in the useful downloads section at the top of this page.

Good luck!