An estimated 10,000 family offices are now in existence, representing one of the biggest growth areas for wealth financial planning of recent years. More than half of these familial financial planning entities have been established in the last 15 years, and now control more than $4 billion.

More importantly, they are becoming more sophisticated and their investment strategies and needs are changing fast, according to J. D. Costa, of McGuire Woods, an international law firm which holds regular briefings on the family office phenomenon.

Significantly, single family offices (SFOs) are moving away from high-cost hedge funds...