David Apfel is an experienced Accounting and Audit professional with over 30 years in the profession.  His professional career has seen him work for both private and public companies at a high level, in a variety of industries.

David started his career with PKF South Africa, one of the largest mid-tier accounting firms in South Africa, providing multi-disciplinary auditing, accounting and business advisory services.  Moving to the UK in 1994, he joined Hamlet Group Plc, a company listed on the London Stock Exchange, as financial controller.

David moved to New Zealand in 2011 and joined Cone Marshall Limited to look after the financial reporting needs of their clients.  Later, becoming a director of Cone Marshall Services Ltd, he helped grow the accounting and tax offerings provided by Cone Marshall.

International Financial Reporting Standards, usually called IFRS, are standards issued by the IFRS Foundation and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) to provide a common global language for business affairs so that company accounts are understandable and comparable across international boundaries.   David has experience of providing clients in multiple jurisdictions with solutions to their reporting obligations, in particular, South Africa, New Zealand, The United States and the United Kingdom.

During a brief period in his career, David took time off to qualify as an SAP consultant and, using his accounting experience and skills, helped develop training material and deliver end user training for SAP UK.  He is currently a member of Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand and works as CFO for the Cone Marshall group of companies.

Sean joined our Geneva office in Switzerland in 2019. He began his career in the fiduciary sector in 2003, has worked for the bank owned Trust companies of Barclays Private Bank and Deutsche Private Bank and most recently has held senior management positions with Intertrust and IQ-EQ. Sean has considerable experience managing teams and complex Trust structures for families based in the Middle East, Africa, United Kingdom and Latin America. He has a diploma from the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and holds the Swiss Advanced Certificate in Trust Management (SACTM). Sean also holds a degree in Finance and Business Law from Stirling University in Scotland, UK. Sean is bi-lingual in English and French, and enjoys mediating to resolve complex international issues for his clients.

Gerard Aquilina has had an extensive career spanning over 44 years in law, investment and private banking and he has worked in the US, Europe, Saudi Arabia and Brazil. He has held senior leadership positions at four global private banks including: CEO Merrill Lynch International Trust Company, CEO HSBC Private Bank for the Americas, Barclays Wealth Regional Head (and later Vice Chairman) for Europe, Middle East, Africa and Latin America, and most recently Vice Chairman UBS Global Emerging Markets where he was relationship manager for key clients.

He earned his BA at Columbia University, a JD from The American University in Washington, DC and an LLM from the University of London. Gerard is a member of The Society of Trust and Estate Planners, the International Tax Planning Association.

Ivan Martini is the Managing Director of Cone & Company in Montevideo, Uruguay.

Martini is a STEP certified Argentine lawyer with a Masters Degree at NYU. Before joining Cone Marshall in Uruguay Martini worked as a Wealth Planning Advisor specializing in Latin America for the private banking divisions of Coutts & Co., Merrill Lynch, HSBC, Barclays and Julius Baer. He has held said positions in the Cayman Islands, Uruguay, the US and Switzerland, travelling regularly to all of Latin America. Martini´s working relationship with his clients’ legal and tax advisors provides him with extensive and updated knowledge of the Latin American regulatory framework, which proves vital at the time of finding the right estate planning solution for his clients.

Martini speaks five languages including Spanish, English, Portuguese, Italian and French.

Director Gerente

Ivan Martini es Director Gerente de Cone & Company en Montevideo, Uruguay.

El Sr. Martini es un abogado argentino certificado por STEP con maestría en la Universidad de Nueva York. Previo a unirse a Cone Marshall en Uruguay, el Sr. Martini trabajó como asesor en planificación patrimonial, especializándose en Latinoamérica para divisiones de banca privada de Coutts & Co. Merrill Lynch, HSBC, Barclays y Julius Baer. Ha mantenido dichas posiciones en las Islas Caiman, Uruguay, Estados Unidos y Suiza, viajando regularmente por toda Latinoamérica.
Las relaciones entabladas por el Sr. Martini y los asesores legales e impositivos de sus clientes le han dado una vasto conocimiento y lo ha mantenido actualizado en materia de marcos regulatorios en Latinoamérica, lo que resulta vital a la hora de encontrar soluciones para sus clientes con respecto a temas de planificación patrimonial.

El Sr. Martini habla cinco lenguas, incluyendo español, inglés, portugués, italiano y francés.

Katrina Robinson is responsible for business operations in the U.S., business development, and acting as a liaison with the Cone Marshall group. Robinson is an attorney admitted to practice in New York. She has worked with family offices and private clients. Prior to law school, she worked as a portfolio manager with an international wealth management team at the Royal Bank of Canada in New York City. Originally from Kingston, Jamaica, she is a graduate of Princeton University, University of Cambridge and Cardozo School of Law. She speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

CEO e Diretora, Teton Trust Company

Katrina Robinson é responsável pelas operações nos Estados Unidos, pelo desenvolvimento de negócios e atua como ponto de contato com o Grupo Cone Marshall. Katrina é advogada admitida na New York Bar Association e trabalha há anos com clientes pessoas físicas, famílias e family offices. Anteriormente à carreira jurída, ela trabalhou como gerente de portfólio de um time internacional de wealth management do Royal Bank of Canada em Nova Iorque. Nascida em Kingston, na Jamaica, Katrina se formou na Universidade de Princeton, na Universidade de Cambridge e na Cardozo School of Law. Ela é fluente em inglês e espanhol e fala português.

CEO y Directora Ejecutiva, Socia, Miembro del directorio.

Katrina Robinson es responsable de operaciones de negocios en los Estados Unidos, desarrollo de negocios, y actúa como nodo del grupo Cone Marshall.

La Sra. Robinson es una abogada con matrícula habilitante para practicar derecho en Nueva York. Ha trabajado con Family Offices y clientes privados. Previo a sus estudios de derecho, trabajó como administradora de carteras con un equipo de administración de patrimonio internacional en el Royal Bank of Canada en la Ciudad de Nueva York. Proveniente de Kingston, Jamaica, se graduó en la Universidad de Princeton, Universidad de Cambridge y facultad de Derecho de Cardozo de Nueva York.

Habla español y portugués.

Martin has worked with the Cone Marshall group since 2013, and most recently transferred to TTC, in March 2018. Previously, he was Director at Cone Marshall’s office in Geneva, involved in wealth planning matters, including trusts and estate. Originally from Argentina, Martin graduated from law school at the University of Buenos Aires, and further studied trusts law in New Zealand where he became a member of the Society of Estate and Trusts Practitioners. In June 2017, he finished a two-year program LLM in International Tax at the Vienna University of Economics and Business. Martin speaks Spanish, Italian, and English with native proficiency.

Manager y Director

Martin se desempeña en el grupo Cone Marshall desde el año 2013. Recientemente fue transferido a Teton Trust Company en marzo de 2018. Previo a ello se desempeñó como Director de Cone Marshall en Ginebra, involucrado en asuntos de planificación patrimonial incluyendo trusts y sucesiones. Proveniente de Argentina, Martin se graduó en Derecho en la Universidad de Buenos Aires, y luego cursó estudios de ley de trusts en Nueva Zelanda donde se convirtió en miembro de la “Society of Estate and Trusts Practicioners”. En Junio de 2017 completó una maestría de dos años en Impuestos Internacionales en la Universidad de Viena de Economía y Negocios.

Martín habla Español, Italiano e inglés con fluidez.

Abbie Flaherty has worked for the Cone Marshall Group since 2012. In early July 2019, she transferred from Cone Marshall Limited in Auckland, NZ, where she was a Legal Associate, to Teton Trust Company to take on the role of Director of Trustee Services. Abbie completed her conjoint degrees BA/LLB at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand, spending her final semester at the University of Copenhagen Denmark. Abbie is a Barrister and Solicitor in New Zealand where she holds a current practicing certificate and is a member of the New Zealand Law Society. Abbie is also a full member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. Abbie’s experience includes setting up and managing structures in both New Zealand and Wyoming, and providing advice on trusts, companies and limited partnerships.

Prior to forming TTC, Geoffrey Cone founded the law practice Cone Marshall Limited (“Cone Marshall”), then known as Cone and Co., in Auckland, New Zealand in 1998. Cone continues to serve as Principal of Cone Marshall and practices in the area of trust and tax planning.

Cone began practicing commercial litigation as well as tax and trust advisory work in 1980. As Partner and Chairman of Partners at a leading Christchurch law firm, his tenure was marked by cases at all levels of the New Zealand courts as leading counsel and the Privy Council in London.

Later, Cone took his comprehensive litigation and advisory experience and further applied it by serving as a litigator in the British West Indies for two years. Cone graduated from University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand with an LLB and honours, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Tax and Trust law with distinction.

David Harris has over 40 years of practical experience in both law and investment banking, specializing in UK private and international business clients, as well as public companies. Early in his career, he practiced law for 12 years and became a partner in the London law firm of Nabarro Nathanson focusing upon taxation and property law.

After leaving Nabarros in 1982 he joined NM Rothschild & Sons Ltd., London investment bankers, where he pioneered the development of the Bank’s international trust business and lead this for the next 26 years. In 1985 he became a Fellow of the Institute of Taxation by thesis on the taxation of private companies.

In 1987 David was appointed to the main board of NM Rothschild & Sons Limited in London. He also served as a director of many other Rothschild Group companies outside the UK and worked with senior members of the Rothschild family.  In the same year David was appointed the London CEO of the Rothschild Trust Group which became successful in Europe, the USA, Latin America, Asia and South Africa.

David became non executive in 2005 and was later appointed Chairman until his retirement in 2008.

Paolo Panico has experience in law and business as the Chairman of Private Trustees SA, an independent and regulated trust company based in Luxembourg. Panico, who speaks eight languages, is qualified as a solicitor in Scotland and as an avocat in Romania, and on such basis is a member of the Luxembourg Bar. He also serves as an adjunct law professor at the University of Luxembourg and the University of Liechtenstein, where he teaches international and comparative trust law.

In May 2016, Panico was appointed Deputy Chair of STEP, Benelux branch, and he had served as Treasurer of the Milan branch from 2006 to 2010. Panico is a member of the International Academy of Estate and Trusts Law (TIAETL), Vice Chairman of the International Tax Planning Association (ITPA), and a member of the Italian Trust Society (Associazione “Il Trust in Italia”) where he served as a council member from 2008 to 2011.

His publications include Private Foundations. Law and Practice (Oxford University Press, 2014) and International Trust Laws (Oxford University Press, 2010; second and entirely revised edition, 2017).

Douglas Barnes is an attorney and member of the New York Bar. He has a focus on corporate law practice on early-stage companies and technology-related transactions. Before embarking on a career in law, Barnes had a fifteen-year career in the IT field that progressed from developing banking and accounting software to co-founding the security software company C2Net (now part of Red Hat). Prior to launching his own law firm in 2015, Barnes practiced corporate and technology transactions law at Sullivan and Cromwell, Milbank, and Gibson Dunn. Barnes grew up very close to Wyoming, in Fort Collins, Colorado, and maintains close connections to the area. Barnes received his J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law and also has a B.S. in Computer Science from Colorado State University and a B.A. in Humanities from the University of Texas at Austin.

Leping joined Cone Marshall in Hong Kong to work closely with our Asian clients where his background and language skills enable him to understand their needs and address their concerns. Leping received his LL.B. from China Foreign Affairs University. Upon graduation, he continued his legal study in the United States, where he pursued his Juris Doctor (J.D.) at SMU Dedman School of Law. After graduating with honors, he further grew his expertise by receiving his LL.M. in Taxation from NYU School of Law. Leping is an attorney admitted to practice in Texas and New York. Born and raised in Beijing, Leping is fluent in both Mandarin and English.

Shanna is a solicitor at Cone Marshall. She graduated from the University of Auckland, New Zealand with a BCom and LLB. She joined Cone Marshall’s Auckland office in 2016 while still in law school where she assisted the solicitors with foreign trust administration. After fully qualifying as a Barrister and Solicitor in New Zealand, Shanna moved to the Hong Kong office to work closely with their Asian clients on the setting up of bespoke structures for these clients and the administration of their domestic and foreign structures. Born in China and raised in New Zealand, Shanna is fluent in both Mandarin and English. Her background and language skills allow her to better understand the clients’ needs and concerns and finding a solution for them. She also assists with the management of Cone Marshall’s Hong Kong trustee companies.

Sam has joined the Cone Marshall group following a lengthy career in London, Italy, Switzerland and the US. Primarily in Real Estate development in London and Italy, he was also Financial Director of Stainless Steel International controlling all the finances of a stainless steel plant and sales group in Romania. He headed a NY based group buying substantial portfolios of NPL’s (Non-performing loans) and has worked closely with several UHNW individuals and families.

Sam is Fluent in English, Italian and French and brings many years of experience in identifying and resolving difficult and delicate situations.

David Harris has over 40 years of practical experience in both law and investment banking, specializing in UK private and international business clients, as well as public companies. Early in his career, he practiced law for 12 years and became a partner in the London law firm of Nabarro Nathanson focusing upon taxation and property law.

After leaving Nabarros in 1982 he joined NM Rothschild & Sons Ltd., London investment bankers, where he pioneered the development of the Bank’s international trust business and lead this for the next 26 years. In 1985 he became a Fellow of the Institute of Taxation by thesis on the taxation of private companies.

In 1987 David was appointed to the main board of NM Rothschild & Sons Limited in London. He also served as a director of many other Rothschild Group companies outside the UK and worked with senior members of the Rothschild family. In the same year David was appointed the London CEO of the Rothschild Trust Group which became successful in Europe, the USA, Latin America, Asia and South Africa.

David became non executive in 2005 and was later appointed Chairman until his retirement in 2008.

Kate received an LLB/BA from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. In 2014 she joined the Cone Marshall Group where she specialised in foreign trusts in the group’s Auckland office. She moved to the Swiss office in 2016 and now splits her time between London and Geneva where she advises on international trust creation, management and administration.

Gabriela is responsible for our operations in Brazil, acting as a liaison with the Cone Marshall Group. Graduated from State University of São Paulo (J.D. 2010), Insper – Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa (LL.M. in Brazilian Taxation 2014) and Georgetown University Law Center (LL.M. in International Taxation 2016). Gabriela is admitted to practise law in Brazil and prior to joing the Group, she worked for top law firms in São Paulo and New York. Gabriela has substantial experience in the area of international tax and estate and wealth planning, mainly with Brazilian clients. She is fluent in Portuguese and English.

Representante no Brasil

Gabriela é responsável por nossas operações brasileiras, atuando como ponto de contato com o Grupo Cone Marshall. Formada em Direito pela UNESP – Franca (2010), pelo Insper – Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa (LL.M. em Direito Tributário Brasileiro, 2014) e Georgetown University Law Center (LL.M. em Direito Tributário Internacional, 2016). Gabriela é advogada admitida na OAB-SP e, antes de se juntar ao Grupo, ela trabalhou em escritórios de grande prestígio em São Paulo e Nova Iorque. Gabriela tem vasta experiência nas áreas de tributação internacional, gestão e sucessão patrimonial. Ela é fluente em inglês.