Preserving the value of a unique asset within a trust

Situation

John was worried about his aging father and found it increasingly difficult to manage his trust, which would eventually benefit John and his siblings. The trust owned a catalog of songs created by his late mother which has provided a steady stream of royalties. John’s father and his attorney (both in their 80s) have been running the music catalog business for many years with little administrative help. 

When John visited the office used to manage the catalog, he found that most of the books and records were kept on paper, with little digitized. John’s concern: If his father and the attorney became incapacitated, who would manage the catalog? John has his own career and family and does not have the time to help with the management.  

Our Approach

Through his J.P. Morgan banker, John learned about the Private Bank’s Closely Held Asset Management (CHAM) team. CHAM is a specialized group of experienced professionals who actively manage trust assets and assess these types of situations and recommend ways to move forward. After talking through options with his father, they both agreed to appoint J.P. Morgan as co-trustee.  

Outcome

After reviewing the trust and its assets, the CHAM team was able to create a corporate structure to hold the music catalog, implement audited financial statements and bring in experts in entertainment and music publishing as board members who would monitor the portfolio on an ongoing basis. The CHAM team also scheduled regular updates with the family to ensure they had the most up-to-date information on the value and revenue generated by the songs, and were also aware of any potential opportunities to monetize the assets. This allowed John’s father to continue benefiting from the royalties and take pride in his wife’s accomplishments, without having to worry John about having to manage the catalog in the future.