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A paper from Memoir Shoppe examines ethical wills and the age-old tradition of passing on spiritual assets. Most commonly written as letters, ethical wills are a unique, everlasting forum through which the ultra-wealthy come to understand and accept that authentic wealth can come from perpetuation of values, hopes, convictions, lessons learned and heartfelt blessings.

Deutsche Bank details the benefits, rationale and structures for short selling in making the case for the United States and European Union arriving at an equivalent regulatory framework for short selling. Currently, varied rules raise the cost of compliance, complicate assessment of market conditions and increase legal risks, the authors say.

Research from Barclays Wealth finds that four factors keep individuals from donating more: a lack of financial security heightened by turbulent markets; a missing need to donate for familial, societal or religious reasons; concern about how charities are operated; and an unsupportive tax system.

A short article from TaylorWessing highlights the benefits of a Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility, including a shorter taxable period, lesser tax penalties and the guarantee of no criminal prosecution than would be otherwise available within the UK tax regime. For an individual eligible for the LDF, in the great majority of cases the LDF will offer a lower-cost tax deal than he or she could otherwise get.

If the market continues to transition to a more fundamentals-driven recovery, investment managers – including Shariah managers - with a track record of strong security selection capabilities may be in a better position than other managers to navigate such an environment, according to SEI Investments. Managers who follow strong due diligence processes and stringent risk management practices may be better positioned to make more consistent and less risky returns for their investors.

The case of Agbaje v Agbaje is the first time the justices of the Supreme Court (formerly the House of Lords) have been asked to consider under Part III of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984 the circumstances in which a spouse may seek an additional financial award in England where the divorce has been concluded elsewhere. In the light of the judgment on 10 March, it is likely to lead to far more applications of this nature.

We believe that the problems associated with government indebtedness are more serious than on previous occasions when government debt was at similar levels because of poor demographics; the extent of private sector leverage; the global nature of the recession; independent central banks and the absence of capital controls, which make it more difficult to "inflate" away debt.

President's Letter: February 2010 Bernardi Securities I am convinced more than ever that the "perfect" bond market hedge does not exist. Many, many investors lost money over the last 18 months on "hedged" bond investments and swaps. Some would have seen their "hedged" investments wiped out entirely had not the government rescued certain financial institutions.

In this set of short articles, WTAS addresses topics ranging from the tax impact of employee bonuses to factors to consider in assessing the fair market value of alternative investments. The authors also discuss changes in state personal and corporate tax rates, the impact of widening state budget gaps on state taxes, and complications of the current estate and gift tax law.

The three taxpayers involved in the Gaines-Cooper case lost before the Court of Appeals because evaluating an individual's status of residence involves difficult questions of fact and judgment, and the taxpayers could not show that the Revenue and Customs Commission had applied guidance incorrectly. In this review of the decision, Deloitte recommends that UK residents seek professional tax advice and consider their positions carefully before leaving the UK.