The 5 Best Trust Lawyers in Queenstown Local Families Depend On
David Harris
| Last Updated: September 2025 With how unpredictable life can be, establishing a trust is one of the best ways to protect your family’s assets and ensure peace of mind across generations. Fortunately, Queenstown families can rely on trust lawyers to make this happen.
But is it as easy as calling early in the morning and expecting the transfer of assets to happen in the blink of an eye? Not really!
It’s not enough to partner up with someone who knows the law – you need someone who understands your unique lifestyle and values your family’s goals.
If you find the process too troublesome already, we’ll make things a little easier for you. With the help of our legal guides, we’ve rounded up the best trust lawyers in Queenstown to depend on in the long run!
How much does it cost to hire a trust lawyer in Queenstown?
1. Anderson Lloyd
Location: Level 2/13 Camp Street
Contact: +6434500700
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday: 8:00 AM – 5:30 PM
Anderson Lloyd impressed us with their services, as their offering covers every stage of life planning, from simple wills to complex family succession matters. They provide tailored advice on established family trusts and asset protection strategies.
As for approach, clients told us they appreciate how clearly the team explained each process, making complicated matters far less intimidating. The sense of ongoing support for navigating estates was one of their strongest qualities.
We also liked that their scope extended into family and relationship property law. They advise on relationship property agreements, helping couples understand how assets are structured to ensure fair agreements.
For clients with both family trusts and shared assets, this is a valuable service to prevent future disputes.
Another major strength is their ability to combine local expertise with national presence. With offices across major locations in New Zealand, they make it easy to access a wide network of specialists.
This makes them a great choice for handling complex, multi-regional cases.
The only drawback is that their services are relatively costlier compared to other law firms in the area. For those with complex cases that require ongoing management, this can be extremely expensive.
2. Mactodd Lawyers
Location: Level 2/26 Hawthorne Drive, Frankton
Contact: +6434410125
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday: 8:4440 AM – 5:00 PM
What we liked about Mactodd Lawyers is their broad and adaptable services, covering everything from property transactions and trusts to wills and family arrangements. They offer start-to-finish support, which takes a lot off the client’s end.
For specific trust-related services, their offerings are equally comprehensive. These include establishing family trusts, resettling trusts, and providing long-term asset protection. This ensures families get full coverage across estate and life planning.
Another strength is their exceptional client communication. According to the clients, emails and calls were returned promptly, always keeping clients in the loop.
Lawyers are approachable, efficient, and supportive. This helped remove the stress from challenging cases.
Their fees are also reasonable, and while they’re not available upfront, clients maintain that they charge favourably. Plus, the firm is accessible, whether it’s for urgent needs or follow-ups for ongoing cases.
The only drawback is that, while they’re efficient and personable, they don’t have the same level of national network as other firms. This may be limiting for clients with cross-regional needs.
Fast and efficient
“A very professional service—fast, efficient, and kind. They cleared up all our doubts and helped us successfully complete our paperwork.
Gracias!”
M. Eugenia Deppeler | Google Review
Highly recommended
“The entire notary process was handled very capably and efficiently. It was also very pleasant starting with the front office. We highly recommend. Anne – USA”
Anne Griesmer | Google Review
3. Todd & Walker Law
Location: Level 2, Craigs Investment Partners House 5 Mile Centre, 36 Grant Road, Frankton
Contact: +6434412743
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday: 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM
Tod & Walker offers private client and trust services covering every stage of estate and asset planning. Their team advises on wills, trust establishment, gifting arrangements, and succession planning.
One of the things that made them stand out is that they also assist in sensitive areas like residential care and retirement village agreements. This makes them a solid choice for families planning across generations.
We also liked that their adaptability extends to international clients. The team offers services to overseas buyers and investors on property and trust implications in New Zealand.
For those navigating the local market from a foreign country, this experience is invaluable for quick turnaround and due diligence on contracts and compliance.
The responsiveness in high-pressure situations is also noteworthy. Several clients noted that lawyers review contracts within hours – they even work late to handle urgent settlements efficiently. This diligence is what makes them a standout choice for most.
The only things we missed are the little convenient touches, like free consultations per lawyer or having a capable site to handle immediate booking requests. Beyond this, we find their services solid and remarkable.
“We have worked with Sarah for over ten years, and have followed her to Todd and Walker Law. Sarah, Tessa and the team at Todd and Walker have been fantastic to deal with, especially on our most recent house sale and purchase. Communication is prompt, they take time to explain everything to us, and there is no issue working remotely with them, which makes it very easy. Highly recommend.”
Sophie Lysaght | Google Review
Genuinely lovely people
“Peter and Gemma were absolutely fantastic to work with. Having just moved from Australia, we were navigating a lot of unfamiliar territory, but they made setting up our business in New Zealand feel easy and stress-free. Super knowledgeable, supportive, and genuinely lovely people — highly recommend!”
The Remarkable Cookie | Google Review
4. Lloyd Troon Law
Location: 1/7 Earl Street
Contact: +6434092104
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday: 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM
Lloyd Troon Law impressed us with their range of services that are both wide-ranging and highly detailed. Their lawyers assist with trust establishment, resettlements, and administration. They also provide litigation support in trust-related disputes.
We liked that they guide clients every step of the way, from applying for probates to overseeing administration duties. Clients said that they appreciate how stages were handled promptly, with clear communication all throughout.
The firm also earned our favor for its personable staff and efficient turnaround times. Lawyers are personable and friendly, which helps many families commit to them for long-term legal needs.
Cases are handled by personalising the approach based on the client’s personal circumstances. And with their balance of practical trust setups and dispute resolution, we can say they’re a solid choice for both routine and complex issues.
The only drawback we noted was that, as a local firm, they may not have the same breadth of nationwide resources as other larger firms. However, their personalised service is what makes them a solid choice for most families.
Professional and informative
“Dale Lloyd and her ‘team’ were awesome. Dale was professional but easy to relate to and provided me with all the information and support I needed at a very difficult time in my life. I look back now and couldn’t think of a better person to have advising me.”
Wendy Gilchrist | Google Review
Prompt, efficient, and thorough
“I have been a longstanding client of Lloyd Troon Law. Their legal service is of a high professional standard. Service is prompt, efficient and thorough. All staff members are very personable and helpful.”
Rosalind Moseby | Google Review
5. AWS Legal Queenstown
Location: The Forge Level 2/20 Athol Street
Contact: +6434410616
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday: 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM
We find AWS a valuable partner for their wide range of services and a solid team of specialists. With their in-depth knowledge, they’re able to personalise practical solutions for clients.
It’s great that their team blends specialties in areas like trust and estate law, with niche knowledge like elder care. This combination allows them to offer sensitive and professional support for specific clients. It’s a strength that many firms lack.
We like that they approach this by assigning a lead partner to each case. This ensures consistency, oversight, and a clear point of contact throughout the case.
Clients also highlighted efficient turnaround times and practical advice that helped them clarify any uncertainties with their case. According to them, the clarity in the communication helped them feel more confident throughout the process.
Beyond the quality of the service, we also like that they’re approachable and reliable as a whole team.
As a larger firm, though, rates are relatively higher compared to smaller local practices. But with the level of personalisation that you get despite their size, we can say they’re a solid investment for most.
Efficient turnaround on workflows
“Hi team, am just reaching out to say a big thank you for all your help and assistance on our latest business start-ups and acquisitions. The relationship we’ve built with Haydon and Rachel is second to none and we’ve appreciated the seamless communication, efficient turnaround on workflows, and sound advice. We feel like we’re in safe hands with Haydon and his team who genuinely seem to have our best interests at heart. I’m super excited to continue on with our personal and business journey knowing that we’ve got top shelf legal partners available when we need them.”
James Ace| Google Review
Great professional firm
“Great professional firm”
Avril Walker | Google Review
