Study uk contract and trust legislation for CISI UK Regulation and Professional Integrity, with a UK-specific reading frame built around the official chapter structure and exam weighting.
This chapter is lightly weighted, but it is where many candidates lose easy marks by treating legal terms as interchangeable. Contract, agency, capacity, insolvency, and trust language all sound formal, yet they point to different relationships and consequences. At this level the exam is not seeking specialist legal drafting. It wants clear recognition of who can act, who can bind whom, what a trust does, and why legal capacity or insolvency status matters in a financial-services relationship.
| Check | What matters |
|---|---|
| Official topic weighting | 2% |
| Core distinction under pressure | identify which legal relationship exists - contract, agency, property, insolvency, or trust - and then match the parties to the right rights and duties. |
| Strongest use of this page | read it before timed sets so you can recognise the real route, rule, or conduct problem being tested |
| UK note | Keep UK framing active: FCA, PRA, Bank of England, HM Treasury, FOS, FSCS, FSMA, SM&CR, COBS, CASS, DISP, COMP, JMLSG, UK MAR, and GBP where a sterling amount matters. |
Most questions test classification of the legal relationship. If someone acts for another person, agency may be the issue. If assets are held for beneficiaries, trust logic is more likely. If legal ability to enter an agreement is in doubt, capacity is the real clue.
It also tests whether you can separate ownership concepts from control concepts. A person can administer or hold assets without being the ultimate beneficial party.
| Section | Main exam angle |
|---|---|
| Contract, agency, capacity, and legal persons | If the issue is authority to act for someone else, think agency before trust or insolvency |
| Estates, property, and insolvency concepts | If the stem is about assets after death or claims when obligations cannot be met, you are in estates or insolvency territory, not product suitability |
| Trust structures and creation | The settlor creates the trust arrangement by transferring assets; the trustee administers them; the beneficiary benefits under the trust terms |
This section focuses on who can enter relationships and who may act on behalf of others. Agency matters because a person may create legal consequences for another; capacity matters because not every person or body can validly take the same steps in every circumstance.
Questions here usually stay broad. The paper wants you to recognise that property rights, estates, and insolvency can affect who controls or receives assets and in what order claims may be handled.
Trust questions normally focus on what a trust relationship is and who the key parties are. The main exam skill is role recognition, not specialist drafting rules.
In a trust arrangement, which party is primarily responsible for administering the trust assets in accordance with the trust terms?
Answer: D.
Once the trust is created, the trustee administers the assets in line with the trust terms. The settlor created the arrangement, but the trustee is the party with ongoing administration duties.