A New Zealand offshore trust firm is capitalising on litigation-fearful US doctors who are moving funds into protective structures. Southpac Group says new client numbers rose more than 290% between 2022 and 2025, with the US now accounting for around 85% of its client base.
The growth follows new US research showing almost 60% of obstetricians and gynaecologists and more than half of general surgeons report having been sued at least once during their careers, according to the firm’s business development director and lawyer Matthew Smith (pictured).
The firm’s media statement regarding the expansion is below –
A New Zealand-based offshore trust firm managing more than $6.8 billion in assets is set to launch a North American export expansion programme as litigation risks drive US doctors to move wealth into Cook Islands and Nevis protection structures.
New US research shows almost 60 per cent of obstetricians and gynaecologists report being sued at least once during their careers. More than half of general surgeons had also faced a malpractice claim, highlighting the long-term litigation risks facing many American medical professionals. The study also found doctors’ risk of facing a malpractice claim increases over the course of their careers and varies significantly by specialty.
Matthew Smith, a lawyer and director of business development at Southpac Group, says many US professionals, business owners and specialists are seeking asset protection before any dispute arises, because malpractice claims, insurance limits, and an aggressive litigation culture can expose personal wealth built up over decades.
“Most clients are professionals or company owners looking to protect assets they have spent decades building,” Smith says.
“The US legal environment is far more aggressive than what we see in New Zealand.”
Smith says asset protection structures used by some doctors are typically part of a broader risk management and wealth preservation strategy, particularly where malpractice insurance policies contain payout caps that may not fully protect them if a claim escalates.
He says this makes offshore asset protection structures far more common in the US than in New Zealand.
Southpac’s new client numbers rose over 290 per cent between 2022 and 2025 as wealthy Americans became increasingly focused on legal risk, asset protection and geopolitical uncertainty following the pandemic.
Smith says their firm currently administers trusts established by clients from 51 countries, with the United States accounting for about 85 per cent of its client base. The UAE, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK are also among its largest markets.
Mike Arand, Southpac CEO, says the firm was the first trustee company licensed in the Cook Islands and has established more than 4,000 trusts over the past 40 years, with medical professionals now one of its fastest-growing client segments.
Arand says most clients have between US$2 million and US$10 million in assets and use offshore trusts as part of long-term wealth protection planning.
The Cook Islands became internationally known for asset protection trusts after introducing specialised legislation in the late 1980s designed to shield assets from future creditor claims, provided structures are established before legal action begins.
Arand says Southpac also uses Nevis, a Caribbean jurisdiction known for protective company legislation, as part of some client structures.
“For many clients, a Cook Islands trust may sit above a Nevis company, creating two layers of protection across separate jurisdictions,” Arand says.
He says their ability to operate across both the Cook Islands and Nevis is one of the firm’s points of difference in the international asset protection market.
Offshore trusts have long attracted controversy globally, but Arand says Southpac operates a comprehensive due diligence programme before taking on clients, including client verification, background checks, sanctions screening, politically exposed person checks and ongoing monitoring.
“Prospective clients can be declined outright where there are concerns around sanctions exposure, criminal activity, tax transparency or existing legal claims,” Arand says.
The Cook Islands was rated compliant or largely compliant across 38 of 40 compliance recommendations set by global standards body the Financial Action Task Force, in its latest international review, compared with New Zealand’s 34.
The financial services firm is now preparing for further expansion of its referrer network of attorneys, wealth advisers and other professional advisers across North America, including a series of meetings with specialist asset protection lawyers in Los Angeles, San Diego and Canada.
“There are thousands of lawyers across the US advising on domestic asset protection, but many still do not fully understand offshore structures,” Smith says.
“That represents a significant growth opportunity for us.”
The company currently employs 26 staff in New Zealand alongside teams in the Cook Islands, Nevis and the Philippines.
Arand says offshore trust administration has quietly become a significant professional services export industry, linking New Zealand, the Cook Islands and North America, with offshore financial services estimated to contribute about 8 per cent of the Cook Islands’ economy, making it one of the country’s largest industries outside tourism.
He says the firm expects North America to remain its primary growth market as more US professionals seek offshore asset protection structures traditionally associated with ultra-wealthy investors.
