By Bob Bauman
A broad net of 15 coral islands in the central heart of the South Pacific, the Cook Islands are spread over 850,000 square miles, southwest of Tahiti and due south of Hawaii. The islands occupy an area the size of India, but have a population (a little over 21,000 people) no larger than a small town in America.
Local time is 10 hours behind GMT, with 9:00 a.m. in Hong Kong is 3:00 p.m. the previous day in the Cook Islands. When it is noon EST in the United States it is 5:00 p.m. in the Cook Islands.
This geographic location gives the Cook Islands, with its excellent modern communications, a strategic advantage in dealing with both the Asian and American markets.
Not as well known as some offshore financial centers, in 1981 the Cook Islands government first began adopting (and updating) a series of wealth and asset-friendly laws. Since then these islands have attained a definite role in offshore financial circles, especially when it comes to asset protection trusts.
Named after Captain James Cook, the famous British explorer who visited them in 1773, the islands became a British protectorate in 1888. By 1900, administrative control was transferred to New Zealand; in 1965, residents chose self-government and a free association with New Zealand. A member of the British Commonwealth, the islands have a constitution with a Westminster style parliament elected every four years by universal suffrage. The legal system is based on British common law and English is widely spoken.
There is much here to for serious persons of any nationality who want strong asset protection supported by sympathetic government and judicial policies.
Existing statutes provide for IBCs, offshore banks, insurance companies, and trusts. All offshore business conducted in the Cook Islands must be channeled through officially registered and regulated trust companies. A comprehensive range of professional trustee and corporate services is available.
In a major American legal case, the U.S. government tried to force the repatriation of funds held by a Cook Island trust and lost, even though the Americans who created the trust for a time were jailed for contempt of court. Not even a federal court could crack the Cook Island trust laws. For more about what is known as the “Anderson case” see FTC vs. Affordable Media LLC, 179 F. 3rd 1228, U.S. Ct. of Appeals, 9th Cir. (1999).
I have a good friend who has had a Cook Islands trust for many years as as protection against possible business liabilities. He is fully satisfied with its operation and protection, with his local American attorney acting as liaison with his Cook Islands trust company.
Source: Sovereign Society