STEP Italy is the Italian branch of the Society of trust and estate practitioners ("STEP"), the world's leading association of experts in trusts, asset protection and generational transitions. STEP has more than 21,000 members worldwide and branches in more than 96 jurisdictions. Its main purposes are to promote a high level of professionalism through curricula and training courses, foster relationships and networking among members, and support business families and Hnwi's in asset management and protection.
STEP Italy is organized as an association that brings together STEP's Italian members, who elect a board of directors every three years and the latter a president. STEP engages with a range of national and international institutions by participating in public consultations including through the dissemination of position papers. It issues certificates and diplomas and sets international and multi-professional standards for its members. It also has a particularly stringent code of conduct whose purpose is to ensure the highest respectability and professional quality of all members of the association.
The Board of Directors is assisted in its work by a Scientific Committee and a Technical Committee. In addition, STEP's activity is articulated through committees that carry out research and training called Sig (Special interest groups) operating in the following areas: international client; cross border estates; business families; contentious trust and estate; mental capacity; philanthropy advisors; charities; and digital assets.
In order to ensure the necessary professional updating of its members, STEP Italy organizes monthly in-depth seminars and webinars and publishes newsletters that collect a review of case law, practice and other relevant news in wealth management matters in addition to in-depth analysis on specific topics.
You can join STEP's membership life as an affiliate member by following the instructions on STEP's institutional website. In order to obtain the internationally recognized title of Trust and estate practitioner (TEP), one must also demonstrate expertise and many years of experience in the association's areas of interest. To this end, three alternative routes are provided:
- the exam route, which requires the accrual of credits by attending courses offered by STEP and passing an exam. In Italy, an advanced training course on the protection, transmission and management of family assets is organized in collaboration with the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore;
- the essay route which takes the form of the presentation of three essays on topics identified by STEP Worldwide;
- the expertise route which is reserved for professionals who can demonstrate at least ten years of experience in the association's areas of interest.
Governing Council:
- Marco Cerrato | President
- Stefano Loconte | Vice-president
- Antonio Longo | Secretary
- Paola Bergamin | Treasurer
- Giovanni Cristofaro | Council member
- Fabrizio Vedana | Council Member