Grand View Private Trust Co Ltd & ors v Wong & anr [2023] WTLR 149
Spring 2023 #190The Global Resource Trust No.1 (the GRT) was created by a declaration of trust dated 10 May 2001. It was accepted that the true economic settlors were two brothers, YC Wang and YT Wang (the founders), who had built a group of companies from the 1950s into one of the largest business conglomerates in Taiwan (FPG Group). They had died in 2008 and 2014 respectively.
Shortly after the GRT was established, Grid Investors Corp, an investment holding company ultimately owned by the founders which held shares in FPG companies, was transferred to the GRT trustee. The value of those shares ...
Prickly Bay Waterside Ltd v British American Insurance Company Ltd [2022] WTLR 1115
Autumn 2022 #188Prickly Bay was engaged in the development of houses and apartments at L’Ance Aux Epines, St George, Grenada. Its principal director was Richard Lee, husband of Rosa Lee. Two adjacent properties were owned by a Mr Steele. Following a dispute between Prickly Bay and Mr Steele a consent order was entered into providing that Prickly Bay would purchase the adjacent properties for US$5m. It was a term of the consent order that Prickly Bay would provide a bank guarantee for US$2.25m. The respondent, BAICO, gave the guarantee.
Mr and Mrs Lee, and Prickly Bay, entered into a loan agreemen...
Commissioners for HMRC v Parry & ors [2020] WTLR 1151
Winter 2020 #181The appellants were the three executors of Mrs Staveley’s estate, two of whom were also her sons. Mrs Staveley held a pension scheme on which she had decided never to draw, with the aim of maximising the death benefit that would accrue to her sons under the scheme. Under the terms of her will, her estate was to be held on trust for her two sons in equal shares. Shortly prior to her death Mrs Staveley had transferred funds from her existing pension scheme into a new personal pension plan (PPP). The motives out of which she had done so were contested between the parties, the appellants all...
Investec & anr v Glenalla & ors [2019] WTLR 95
Spring 2019 #174The Background
The Privy Council heard eight appeals arising from the management of the Tchenguiz Discretionary Trust (“TDT”) between March 2007 and October 2008.
The TDT is a discretionary trust governed by the law of Jersey; in the period in question it had two trustees which were governed by Guernsey law: Investec Trust (Guernsey) Limited (“Investec”) and Bayeux Trustees Limited (collectively “the Trustees”). In July 2010 the Trustees were replaced as trustees of the TDT by Rawlinson & Hunter Trustees SA (“R&H”), a company incorporated in Switzer...
Rangers v Advocate General for Scotland [2017] WTLR 1093
Autumn 2017 #169The appeal concerned a tax avoidance scheme by which employers paid remuneration to their employees through an employees’ remuneration trust in the hope that the scheme would avoid liability to income tax and Class 1 national insurance contributions. The question on appeal was whether an employee’s remuneration was taxable as their emoluments or earnings when it was paid to a third party in circumstances in which the employee had no prior entitlement to receive it himself or herself.
The employing companies, including RFC, operated the tax avoidance scheme in the tax years between...
Angove’s PTY Limited v Bailey & anr [2016] UKSC 47
October 2016 #163A, an Australian winemaker, employed an English company called D&D as its agent and distributor in the UK. D&D bought wines from A in its own right and sold wines on A’s behalf pursuant to an agency and distribution agreement (the agreement). The agreement was terminable by either party on six months’ notice or by notice with immediate effect in a number of events including the appointment of an administrator or liquidator.
On 21 April 2012, D&D went into administration and on 10 July 2012 into creditors’ voluntary liquidation. On administration there were outstanding ...
In the matter of the Baronetcy of Pringle of Stichill UKPC 16
September 2016 #162This was a referral to the Privy Council under s4 of the Judicial Committee Act 1833, under which the Queen can refer matters to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council for advice. On this reference, the Privy Council was asked to advise as to (i) who was entitled to be entered on the Official Roll of the Baronetage as the Baronet of Pringle of Stichill; and (ii) whether DNA evidence resulting from the obtaining of a DNA sample from the tenth baronet (Sir Steuart Robert Pringle) in late 2009 or early 2010 should be admitted in order to determine the first question.<...
Brazil v Durant [2015] UKPC 35
October 2015 # 153The effective plaintiff was the municipality of Sao Paulo (the municipality). The Federal Republic of Brazil was nominally the plaintiff because its constitution required it to be a party to any action brought outside Brazil by a Brazilian public authority. The defendants were companies registered in the British Virgin Islands (the companies) which were, at the relevant time, under the practical control of Mr Paulo Maluf and/or his son Mr Flavio Maluf. From 1993 Mr Paulo Maluf had been mayor of the municipality.
The case concerned payments made to Mr Paulo Maluf, or others on his ...
Crociani & ors v Crociani & ors [2014] UKPC 40
July/August 2015 #151By a trust deed dated 24 December 1987 (trust deed) Edoarda Crociani (settlor) settled a promissory note on herself and others for the benefit of her daughters, Cristiana Crociani (Cristiana) and Princess Camilla de Bourbon des Deux Siciles. The trust deed conferred extensive powers on the trustees in respect of both capital and income, including power to pay the whole or any part of the trust funds to another trust. Originally, it was provided that the forum for the administration of the trust and its construction should be governed by the law of the Bahamas. Clause 12(6), howe...