The Estate of Nafisa Hasan v Digit Ltd & anr [2024] WTLR 883
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Autumn 2024 #196The court determined preliminary issues in respect of whether the deceased (who died in 2022 after the issue of proceedings) had a beneficial interest in a residential flat and, if so, what that interest was and whether the interest was held on an express trust, constructive trust or resulting trust, or under the doctrine of proprietary estoppel.
The first defendant was a Cayman Island company incorporated in 1998, which acquired the leasehold title of the flat shortly afterwards. The first defendant was incorporated by the deceased’s former husband, a colonel in the Pakistani arm...
Phillipe & ors v Cameron & ors [2019] WTLR 661
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Summer 2019 #175The claimants were the trustees (‘trustees’) of land at Sandy Lane, Cheam (‘land’) which had been occupied by St Andrew’s (Cheam) Lawn Tennis Club (‘club’) since the execution of a declaration of trust dated 11 July 1938 (‘trust deed’). The club had been established for the purpose of acquiring and fitting out land for use at a tennis club by members of St Andrew’s Cheam United Reformed Church (‘church’). When an opportunity arose to acquire suitable vacant land, a general meeting was called at which it was proposed to spend £750 in the purchase of the land and additional sums for the co...
Van der Merwe v Goldman & anr [2016] EWHC 790 (Ch)
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | June 2016 #160The claimant and first defendant were husband and wife and joint freehold owners of a property in the UK where they lived. Up until March 2006 the claimant and first defendant were treated as domiciled in South Africa. However, from 6 April 2006 they would be treated as domiciled in the UK for inheritance tax purposes. In November 2005 the claimant took advice on mitigating the consequences of being treated as domiciled in the UK for the purposes of inheritance tax. He was advised that his position would be improved if he placed the property into an interest in possession settlement.
...Bellis v Challinor [2015] EWCA Civ 59
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | January/February 2016 #156The case concerned a property investment scheme relating to land at and around an airport known as Fairoaks (the Fairoaks scheme). The Fairoaks scheme was the last in a substantial series of schemes (the Albemarle schemes) which, prior to the Fairoaks scheme, were unregulated collective investment schemes promoted by Egan Lawson (later ECS after its takeover by Erinaceous Group PLC (Erinaceous)) involving investment through a single purpose vehicle (SPV). The underlying subject matter of each scheme consisted of either commercial or development property or a mixture of both. The schemes ...
Wise v Jimenez & anr HC12CO0367
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | January/February 2014 #136In 2007 the defendant Mr Jimenez (J) became involved in the development of a golf course in France and gathered together a number of investors including the claimant Mr Wise (W), then a close friend of his, who provided £500,000 to invest in the project. The money was procured by means of a loan from Coutts and Co of £350,000 together with funds from two other accounts held by W. It was transferred to the account of a dormant company, the second defendant, CD Investments Ltd (CDI) set up by W and now in liquidation, and hence to an account with HiFX in J’s name in the form of €...
Patel v Mirza [2013] EWHC 1892 (Ch)
Wills & Trusts Law Reports | December 2013 #135The claimant (Mr Patel) became friends with Mr Georgiou in 2004. Mr Patel was introduced to the defendant (Mr Mirza) at the end of 2008 or the beginning of 2009 by Mr Georgiou, probably at one of the poker games Mr Georgiou hosted every Friday evening.
Mr Mirza was and is employed as a foreign exchange broker and also had a personal spread-betting account.
In August 2009 Mr Patel stated that he was approached by Mr Georgiou with a deal he had been offered by Mr Mirza – Mr Mirza would use his spread-betting account to bet on the movement of RBS shares and that Mr Mirza knew ...