Category Archives: Equity and Trusts
Peter Benson, ‘Some leading themes in the contract scholarship of Stephen Waddams’
ABSTRACT Among the leading themes in Stephen Waddams’s monumental contributions to the development and deeper understanding of modern contract law, this chapter focuses on two of the most fundamental that particularly preoccupied him throughout his career. The first concerns the proper significance and roles of equity and common law after their integration in 1875 in […]
Goffe and Mandel, ‘Resolution of family inheritance, succession and trust disputes in the US: judicial and nonjudicial approaches’
ABSTRACT In the United States, family trust controversies can be resolved through both judicial and nonjudicial methods. The Uniform Trust Code, enacted in 2000, changed common law to allow nonjudicial settlement agreements, with six primary methods for modifying irrevocable trusts: using existing trust powers, decanting, nonjudicial settlement agreements (NJSAs), merger, and powers of appointment. Washington […]
Anthony Marino, ‘Ideological Bias and Breach of the Fiduciary Duty of Care’
ABSTRACT This paper analyzes a remedy for breach of the fiduciary duty of care in a principal-advisor relationship. The advisor’s effort cost is ideologically too high for a certain investment. This bias can lead to a breach of care, if the advisor’s investigative effort is unobservable by the principal. The principal audits and sues the […]
Nathan Tamblyn, ‘Beneficiaries and the arbitration of trust disputes’
ABSTRACT The Law Commission is considering whether to recommend legislation which would bind beneficiaries to an arbitration clause in a trust instrument. This article considers the issues which any such legislation would need to address. Nathan Tamblyn, Beneficiaries and the arbitration of trust disputes, Trusts & Trustees. Published: 24 November 2025.
Peter Watts, ‘Secret commissions and agents’ remuneration – a critique of Hopcraft v Close Brothers Ltd at common law and equity’
ABSTRACT This article is a critique of the decision of the Supreme Court in Hopcraft v Close Brothers Ltd. It argues that the litigation in the case may have been undertaken on an overly expansive view of what constitutes a secret commission. It also questions whether single-minded loyalty is a sine qua non of the […]
Martin Dixon, ‘Real Property Rights in England and Wales: Removing the Law/Equity Distinction’
ABSTRACT The purpose of this chapter is not to discuss property law and its relationship to equity, where equity is a set of principles deployed to mitigate the harshness of the common law. That is a well-mined seam, and it remains very much a live issue in the courts of England and Wales. Instead, the […]
Martin Dixon, ‘Here we go Again Manipulating Constructive Trusts’
ABSTRACT In a previous, not too distant, issue of The Conveyancer, I had a solid moan about what I thought was an unfathomable High Court decision on the scope of constructive trusts as they operated in the context of co-ownership. Much to the relief of this author, the appeal in Hudson v Hathway saw the […]
Chow and Cheung, ‘Constructive trust in cryptoasset fraud: D’Aloia v Persons Unknown and others [2024] EWHC 2342 (Ch)’
ABSTRACT This case note examines the recent case D’Aloia v Persons Unknown and others [2024] EWHC 2342 (Ch), which affirmed the status of cryptoassets as property under common law, and applied traditional legal principles, including unjust enrichment and constructive trust, to address crypto fraud involving Tether (USDT). This case note also highlights the tension between […]
Matthew Ngai, ‘Sirens in the fog: the issues of Jus Standi in trust-related investment arbitration’
ABSTRACT The collision between trusts and investment arbitration has ignited a critical jus standi battle: should beneficiaries or trustees have standing under BITs? This article dissects landmark rulings favouring beneficiaries, revealing their dissonance with English trust law. I argue that trustees, as legal owners of the trust property, should be the sole claimants capable of […]
Nathan Tamblyn, ‘Human rights and the arbitration of trust disputes’
ABSTRACT This article discusses whether the arbitration of trust disputes would be contrary to the right to a fair trial. Nathan Tamblyn, Human rights and the arbitration of trust disputes, Trusts & Trustees. Published: 8 November 2025.