The dispute over Huka Lodge (see the Fight Over Huka Lodge) highlights an element of certain trust-based relationships that can be overlooked. This is the ability for subsequent trust-related disputes to survive time-barring due to the passage of time. Michael Kidd and Alexander van Heeren were former partners in a successful partnership that amassed significant wealth … Continue reading
The Review of the Law of Trusts started back in 2002 with a discussion document followed by a small paper entitled Some Problems with the Law of Trusts. In the way the use of trusts has since grown, so too did the review. The review morphed to a three-stage review of trusts: stage 1 (the current stage) is a comprehensive … Continue reading
Family trusts are tricky things. The more so when there are loose ideas about maintaining and benefitting beneficiaries; but no real means to do so. Commonly such trusts own a single asset and require regular financial or other assistance from the settlor or involved trustees. Such was the position of the trust settled by one Mrs … Continue reading
Much is written about breach of trust, and the liability that can flow. However, a sensible question, might be, is a breach of trust always fatal? Can trustees have a go at getting it right? As it happens, yes, in some circumstances. as is demonstrated in Masters v Stewart they can. In that case, a capital distribution … Continue reading
The latest instalment of the long-running saga involving one Mrs Colebrook, the trustees of the Stokes Family Trust and the trustees of the RM Colebrook Family Trust has held that the trustees of the Stokes Family cannot sustain caveats lodged against the titles of the properties owned by the trustees of the RM Colebrook Family Trust. Background … Continue reading
There are a large number of charitable trusts in New Zealand. The reason for this is not well understood: see How Charitable is New Zealand for some insight. One of the issues that arises, perhaps more in New Zealand than elsewhere, due to the number of charitable trusts, is that the trustees are not always … Continue reading