Clarke & ors v Shrewsbury and Atcham Constituency Labour Party & ors [2024] WTLR 67

Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Spring 2024 #194

James Morris (the settlor), a Labour Party councillor and businessman, settled two trusts (the trusts). This claim concerned the validity of the trusts, their rectification, a proprietary estoppel claim by a beneficiary, and the consequences of the trusts’ invalidity.

The first trust concerned Morris Hall, Bellstone Court, Bellstone, Shrewsbury (the hall), which Mr Morris transferred to himself and three others to hold pursuant to a declaration of trust dated 5 April 1934 (the hall trust).

Clause 1(g) of the hall trust provided:

‘After making provision fo...

Wang v Darby [2022] WTLR 327

Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Spring 2022 #186

The parties entered into contracts whereby they exchanged specified quantities of cryptocurrencies, namely Tezos and Bitcoin, on terms of reciprocal restoration of the same amounts of each currency upon or after an agreed period of two years. The claimant applied to continue a worldwide freezing order and proprietary injunction. The defendant applied to strike out/enter summary judgment on the proprietary claims.

Held – applications granted in part

  1. 1) Principles:
    1. a) Fungible and non-identifiable digital assets constitute property ...

Constandas v Lysandrou & ors [2018] WTLR 19

Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Spring 2018 #171

The claimant claimed a beneficial interest in a residential property registered in the joint names of the first and second defendants, his sister and brother-in-law respectively, on the basis that in 1959 he paid £600 towards the purchase price. By the time the matter came to trial in October 2015 both first and second defendants had lost capacity.

Giving judgment at first instance, HHJ Faber found both claimant and defendant witnesses to be unreliable. She concluded that on the evidence available she could not arrive at any finding as to who had made the £600 downpayment in 1959,...

Phillipe & ors v Cameron & ors [2012] EWHC 1040 (Ch)

Wills & Trusts Law Reports | September 2012 #122

The claimants were the trustees of the St Andrew’s (Cheam) Lawn Tennis Club Trust (the trustees). The trustees sought declarations as to the beneficial ownership of land occupied by the St Andrew’s (Cheam) Lawn Tennis Club (the club) since 1938 (the land).

The church now known as St Andrew’s United Reformed Church Cheam (the church) was originally founded in the 1920s. From the church’s inception many of its members played tennis together and in 1930 they established a tennis club which was to become the club. The club’s first general meeting was held...