Beneficial ownership: Opening the door

Establishing a common intention constructive trust when property ownership is in one occupant’s name and not the other can be tricky. Melody Munro gives an update Once a common intention is established, the court is adopting a fairly expansive view as to how a claimant may act to their detriment. Although claimants, defendants and common …
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O’Neill v Holland [2020] WTLR 1397

Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Winter 2020 #181

This was a second appeal against the decision of HHJ Pelling to overturn the trial judge’s order declaring inter alia that A was a 50% beneficial owner of A and R’s former home (the property) under a common intention constructive trust.

The trial judge had found that A’s father had bought the property in 1998 with the intention that it should be A and R’s family home. In 2008, A’s father had transferred the property to R for nil consideration. The trial judge had found that A’s father intended A to have a beneficial interest in it and had originally planned to transfer it into A a...

Constructive Trust Claims: Excuses, detriment and imputation

Don McCue examines the lessons from Curran v Collins [2015] ‘Two issues currently need to be resolved as a matter of some urgency… First, in no-agreement cases, whether the Rosset threshold requirement should be relaxed. Second, the question of inference or imputation needs clarification.’ Claims on constructive trust principles to a share of the beneficial …
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Cohabitants: A new age?

Deborah Jeff considers potential changes to the law relating to cohabitants and provides a timely reminder of the limited remedies currently available ‘The Cohabitation Rights Bill aims to provide basic protection for cohabitants, whether same-sex or opposite-sex, which is similar to, but not as generous or extensive as, the rights available to married couples.’ Figures …
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