Manx advocate John Rimmer has been in Toronto this month at the invitation of STEP Canada, delivering the opening speech in the plenary session of the STEP Canada Annual Conference 2014.  This is the largest single event in the STEP Worldwide calendar, with an impressive 610 delegates in attendance.

John was asked to present an update on international planning and to give a run-down of international trust cases over the past year.  He scrutinised more than 40 cases and provided a hand-out summarising 30 of the most important.  He reported on cases from the Isle of Man, Guernsey, Jersey, Cayman, BVI and Bermuda.

John’s talk also looked at the changes in International Planning over the past decade, reflecting on a talk he gave in 2004 and how legislation has moved on.

Talking about his time in Canada, John said: “It was a real honour to be invited to present at this conference, and a chance to raise awareness among leading professionals about the Isle of Man.”

John has  a very high profile, both locally and internationally.  Last year he was invited to address the New York State Bar and STEP USA conference in New York, which led to his invitation to speak at the conference in Toronto this year.

John is recognised by various publications. He is the only Isle of Man practitioner listed in the Citywealth Honours list and in 2013 he was named by Legal Who’s Who in the top ten international estate planning lawyers.  John is on the STEP Worldwide International Committee, is a former Isle of Man branch chairman and was on STEP’s governing body, Council, representing the Crown Dependencies for three years.