By: Michael Polonsky
Two minutes with Michael Polonsky, Consultant – Stonehage Fleming Law
According to our 2018 research report, ‘Four Pillars of Capital: Practical Wisdom and Leadership for Changing Times’, the top risk to long-term family wealth was family disputes or break-ups. Our follow-up 2020 survey, conducted over the course of the UK lockdown, identified that family disputes are still considered to be the greatest risk - and experience leads us to agree.
We caught up with consultant and litigation expert Michael Polonsky to find out how he helps families and advisers proactively identify and resolve disputes.
I have almost 50 years’ experience in dispute resolution. This includes litigation and arbitration. In addition, I have a large global network of law firms with whom I have worked for many years. When setting up a team my aim is always to work with the best individual litigators. It’s an individual you want to engage, not a law firm, so it should be someone you have worked well with in the past or who comes recommended to you by a trusted source.
In short, I help families resolve disputes. My role is to proactively identify potential risks, provide support and project-manage proceedings, often offering a second opinion and providing feedback on their legal team. This can include advice on strategy and fees.
Our global network allows us to handle complicated cross-border litigation. We have helped many clients achieve success in some of the most complex international disputes involving businesses, real estate, wills, trusts and rare collectibles to name a few. I have worked with large families split up across Australia, Africa and the US - different continents with different legal systems. Dealing with families, emotions are often running high. Having a cool-headed mediator or third party can be worth its weight in gold.
A potential dispute will often come to me via our team of trustees. As they are so close to their clients’ interests, they often see the risks at a distance and come to me. Together we find a route to overcoming the problem – helping our clients navigate their way through these sensitive situations. As a team, we have been involved in disputes in the UK and many offshore jurisdictions including the BVI, Bahamas, Mauritius, Switzerland and the Channel Islands.
Michael is Consultant of Stonehage Fleming Law Limited. He is an English Solicitor and specialises in dispute resolution. He joined the Group in April 2018 from Berwin Leighton Paisner where he was a Partner for over 40 years. He grew up in South Africa and is a graduate of Wits University and Oxford University.
Photo by Bill Oxford on Unsplash
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