Comprehensive Estate Planning

Clear legal support for estate planning in the UAE, helping you protect your rights, family, assets and future. With senior legal guidance.

Comprehensive Estate Planning (Wills, Foundations, Trusts & Inheritance Proceedings)

A complete estate plan is more than a Will. We provide holistic succession planning integrating Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, and asset protection structures – including specific arrangements for cryptocurrency and digital assets – and handle inheritance proceedings when needed.

In-depth description

Comprehensive estate planning is not a single document – it is a coordinated strategy that integrates your Wills, asset protection structures, tax planning, and inheritance arrangements into a coherent plan for the management and transfer of your wealth.

Comprehensive Estate Planning

This is our holistic, flagship service that integrates all aspects of your succession into one cohesive strategy. We combine Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, and asset protection structures to create a complete roadmap for the management, preservation, and transfer of your global wealth, tailored to your unique family circumstances and long-term goals.

Scope of work

  • Conduct a series of in-depth consultations to map the client’s entire global asset base, family structure, and long-term objectives.
  • Design a cohesive international estate plan that integrates Wills for different jurisdictions, Trusts, and Powers of Attorney.
  • Provide a strategic memorandum outlining how all elements work together to manage wealth transfer and mitigate tax.
  • Oversee the drafting and implementation of all required legal documents.

Deliverables

  • A Comprehensive Estate Plan Report and strategy document.
  • All drafted legal instruments (Wills, Trusts, POAs).

Pricing

  • AED 30,000 onward (Hourly rate)


Comprehensive Estate Planning (Crypto)

We offer a cutting-edge estate planning service specifically for digital assets. We address the unique challenges of cryptocurrency and NFTs, creating legal structures and practical protocols to ensure your chosen fiduciaries can securely access, manage, and distribute your digital wealth to your heirs, preventing it from being lost forever.

Scope of work

  • Conduct in-depth workshops to inventory the client’s digital assets (cryptocurrencies, NFTs, wallets).
  • Design a legal and practical strategy for the secure management and transfer of these assets.
  • Develop a Fiduciary Access Protocol detailing how keys and passwords can be securely accessed by trustees or heirs.
  • Draft specialized clauses within Wills and Trusts to explicitly govern digital assets.

Deliverables

  • A Comprehensive Estate Plan tailored for digital assets.
  • A secure Fiduciary Access Protocol document.
  • Custom-drafted Wills and Trusts including specific digital asset provisions.

Pricing

  • AED 50,000 onward (Hourly rate)


Inheritance Proceedings (Personal Assets)

After a loved one has passed away, we provide compassionate and efficient legal assistance to administer their estate in the UAE. We manage the entire probate process, from obtaining the official succession certificate from the UAE courts to ensuring the assets are legally transferred to the rightful heirs in accordance with the Will or applicable law.

Scope of work

  • Collate all necessary documentation for the deceased’s estate.
  • Prepare and file the application for a Succession Certificate with the relevant UAE court.
  • Represent the heirs in all court proceedings.
  • Once the order is issued, manage the legal process of liquidating assets and formally distributing them to the rightful heirs according to the Will or applicable law.

Deliverables

  • A filed application for a Succession Certificate.
  • Full representation in court.
  • The final court-issued Succession Certificate.
  • Assistance in the final distribution of assets.

Pricing

  • AED 50,000 to AED 500,000 (Hourly rate and/or Fixed Fee)

Does your estate plan cover every asset and jurisdiction?

Do you have assets in more than one country?

A single Will rarely covers everything. Comprehensive estate planning aligns all jurisdictions into one coherent strategy.

Have you never reviewed your succession plan as a whole?

Most people have a Will but no integrated strategy. The gaps between documents are where wealth gets lost or disputed.

Do you hold crypto, property, and financial assets together?

Each asset class needs tailored legal treatment. We bring Wills, Trusts, Foundations, and digital asset plans together.

Has a family member recently passed away with UAE assets?

Inheritance proceedings in the UAE require a Succession Certificate. We manage the full process on your behalf.

Frequently asked questions

A full estate plan typically combines: a UAE Will (DIFC/ADGM), jurisdiction-specific Wills for overseas assets, a foundation or trust structure, guardian appointments for minor children, power of attorney, beneficiary designations review, and tax exposure mapping across all relevant jurisdictions.
Yes. Estate planning is not just about death; it also covers incapacity. Without a plan, your assets may be frozen, your family may face significant delays and costs, and your minor children could be placed under court-appointed guardianship. Starting early also gives you far more structural options.
 
Not reliably. EU Succession Regulation may allow limited choice of law, but UAE assets, particularly real estate and UAE-registered assets, are generally subject to UAE rules. A French notaire and a UAE lawyer working together is the recommended approach for cross-border families.
Without a registered UAE Will, your UAE estate may be distributed under Sharia inheritance rules, regardless of your own wishes or your home country’s laws. This can mean your spouse receives less than expected and assets may not pass to your intended beneficiaries. A registered Will overrides this default.

At minimum after any major life event: marriage, divorce, birth of a child, significant asset acquisition or disposal, relocation, or a change in relevant laws. A formal review every three to five years is also advisable to ensure the plan remains aligned with your goals and current legal requirements.

Key contacts:

Romain Astruc

Managing Partner – Generalist, Advisory & Litigation

Mehdi Al Ghafari

Associate – Corporate, Commercial & Litigation

David Dutruc-Rosset

Associate – Family, Individuals & Litigation

Get in touch

Other services you might need

A comprehensive estate plan covers multiple dimensions. These are the services most clients need alongside their succession planning.

UAE Wills - DIFC, ADGM & Dubai Court Wills

Your UAE Will is the cornerstone of your local estate plan. We draft and register it with full legal protection.
Learn more

Asset Protection & Tax Planning for Individuals

Estate planning without tax planning leaves value on the table. We handle both in a single integrated strategy.
Learn more

Transgenerational Wealth Transmission Planning

Pass on your business and personal wealth with governance structures that protect your legacy across generations.
Learn more

WHAT SET US APART

Why ASTRUC & Co

Complete estate planning requires expertise across multiple legal systems and structures. That is exactly what we deliver.

1.

Cross-border fluency

A complete estate plan for an internationally mobile family requires coordinated expertise across UAE, French and international law. We operate across all three without

2.

Senior counsel only

Estate planning involves the most consequential decisions you will make for your family. Every engagement is led by senior lawyers with multi-jurisdiction succession planning

3.

One firm, full scope

We handle Wills, foundations, trusts, French succession, tax planning and inheritance proceedings in-house – a single, coordinated strategy, not separate advisors working in

More than legal counsel

With you, all the way

Life in the UAE brings extraordinary opportunities — and equally complex legal realities. Whether you’re relocating your family, navigating a divorce across jurisdictions, or structuring an inheritance that spans continents, you deserve a legal partner who understands both the technicalities and the human side of what you’re going through. At ASTRUC & Co, we treat every client’s situation as if it were our own.

From our offices in Dubai to our network spanning Riyadh, Paris, and Luxembourg, we bring senior-level attention to every matter — personal or financial. We believe the best legal advice is honest, clear, and delivered by someone who genuinely cares about the outcome. That’s why our clients stay with us, and why they come back when life presents its next chapter.

Ready to move forward?

Talk to our team about your situation. We’ll walk you through your options and help you move forward with clarity.

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Merger and Acquisition
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