They say that “all is fair in love and war.” But when it comes to succession planning for wealthy families, what is fair?

This was one of the questions posed at a recent dinner in Jersey hosted by Richard Joynt, executive director at eprivateclient Top Trust Company, Ocorian. The dinner was attended by members of the Ocorian team; Ed Powles, a partner at London-based law firm Maurice Turnor Gardner; Carolyn Steppler, head of UK wealth planning at Credit Suisse in Switzerland; and a number of Jersey-based wealthy individuals.

Fairness is an important aspect to get right, Mr Powles said. In his experience the...