Introduction

In In the Matter of the H Trust,(1) the Supreme Court delivered an important judgment in which it exercised its inherent supervisory powers over trusts to appoint protectors.

The court also reaffirmed the wide breadth of its jurisdiction under Section 47 of the Trustee Act 1975 to grant trustees power to vary trusts when it is satisfied that it is expedient to do so.

Facts

The trustee applied to the court seeking orders:

  • declaring that the current protector of the trust had not been validly appointed in accordance with the provisions of the trust deed;
  • appointing new protectors to fill the vacancy; and
  • pursuant to Section 47, conferring on the trustee the power to vary the trust deed to enable the trustee to appoint protectors if the position became vacant in future and to pay remuneration to professional protectors from the trust fund.

Decision

In granting all three orders, the chief justice held that:

  • the current protector had not been validly appointed;
  • the court was satisfied that it had inherent jurisdiction to appoint protectors in certain circumstances where the trust instrument provides for such an office;
  • the proposed appointment of the nominated protectors was in the best interests of the due administration of the trust; and
  • the proposed variations to the trust deed were within the broad ambit of the concept of 'transaction' included in Section 47 and were expedient.

Endnotes

(1) 2019, SC (Bda) 27 Com (30 April 2019).

This article was first published by the International Law Office, a premium online legal update service for major companies and law firms worldwide. Register for a free subscription.