Equitable claims, trusts and fiduciary duties.
Counsel for constructive and resulting trusts, proprietary estoppel, breach of fiduciary duty, undue influence and equitable remedies across England and Wales.
Equitable claims arise where the strict legal position does not reflect what was actually agreed or what fairness requires. A property is in one name but two people paid for it. A director diverts an opportunity to a company of their own. A promise about inheritance is made for years and then broken. Each of those situations is dealt with by equity rather than by contract.
These cases are evidence heavy and often deeply personal, which makes an early and dispassionate assessment important. Clerk&Counsel introduces independent barristers who take chancery and equitable work, so you get a written view on the merits from the person who would argue the case, on a fee agreed in advance.
Where a barrister on the panel holds a litigation extension from the Bar Standards Board, they can conduct the claim from start to finish without a solicitor on the record. Where the case needs a full litigation team, we will say so and can work with your solicitor instead.
Equitable claims counsel takes on.
- Common intention constructive trusts and resulting trusts over land and other assets.
- Proprietary estoppel claims based on assurances about property or inheritance.
- Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 applications between co-owners.
- Breach of fiduciary duty by directors, partners, trustees and agents.
- Account of profits, equitable compensation and tracing into substitute assets.
- Undue influence and unconscionable bargains, including claims against lenders.
- Knowing receipt and dishonest assistance against third parties.
- Specific performance, rescission, rectification and injunctive relief.
Beneficial interests and shared homes.
Disputes about beneficial ownership are among the most common equitable claims. Where a property is held in one name, the claimant must establish a common intention that it be shared and detrimental reliance on that intention. Where it is held jointly, the starting point is equal beneficial ownership, which can be displaced by evidence of a different intention.
Proprietary estoppel runs on slightly different lines. An assurance, reliance and detriment can give rise to an equity that the court satisfies in the way it thinks appropriate, which may be a share, a monetary award or a right to occupy. Farming and family business cases frequently turn on years of low paid work in return for promises about the future.
Practical resolution usually involves valuation evidence, an accounting for mortgage payments and improvements, and an order for sale or a buy out. Counsel will advise on the realistic range of outcomes before positions are entrenched.
Directors, partners and trustees.
A fiduciary owes duties of loyalty and good faith that go beyond anything in the contract. Diverting a corporate opportunity, taking a secret commission, competing with the company or acting where there is an unmanaged conflict all give rise to remedies that are usually more favourable than damages for breach of contract.
An account of profits strips the gain rather than compensating the loss, which matters where the wrongdoer has done well out of the breach. Where the profit is identifiable in a specific asset, a proprietary claim gives priority over other creditors, which is decisive if the defendant is insolvent.
Third parties who receive trust property with knowledge, or who assist dishonestly in a breach, can be liable as well. That widens the pool of solvent defendants and is often the practical route to recovery.
Interim relief and fee structure.
Urgent cases may need an injunction, a freezing order or a restriction on the title to prevent a property being sold before the claim is heard. These applications carry duties of full and frank disclosure and a cross undertaking in damages, and counsel will explain the exposure before any application is made.
Advice and drafting are quoted as fixed fees against the papers. Trials and multi day hearings are quoted as a brief fee plus refreshers, and urgent injunction work is priced separately given the timescales involved.
Because many equitable claims involve family members or former business partners, mediation is often the better outcome. Counsel can advise on settlement structure and represent you at the mediation itself.
Specialist areas within this practice.
- Trust dispute barristers
Claims involving express trusts, trustees and beneficiaries.
- Shareholder and partnership disputes
Fiduciary duty claims between business owners.
- Contentious probate barristers
Estate disputes including estoppel and inheritance claims.
- Civil fraud barrister
Tracing, knowing receipt and asset recovery.
Tell us what was promised and what you did about it.
Send a short chronology, any documents recording the arrangement and details of the asset involved. We will come back with counsel options and a fee basis for an initial advice.
Common questions.
What is an equitable claim?
It is a claim based on principles developed by the courts of equity rather than on a contract or a statutory right. Common examples include constructive and resulting trusts, proprietary estoppel, breach of fiduciary duty, undue influence, and claims for equitable remedies such as an injunction or specific performance.
Can I claim a share of a property I am not registered on?
Possibly. A common intention constructive trust or a proprietary estoppel can give a beneficial interest to someone who is not on the title, where there was an agreement or assurance and the claimant acted to their detriment in reliance on it. Contributions alone are rarely enough without more.
What is a breach of fiduciary duty?
A fiduciary such as a director, partner, trustee or agent must act in good faith, avoid conflicts and not profit from their position. Breach can lead to an account of profits, equitable compensation and, where the property can be traced, a proprietary claim over the asset itself.
Is there a time limit on equitable claims?
Some equitable claims have no fixed statutory limitation period, but the doctrine of laches means unreasonable delay can defeat a claim. Others attract limitation periods by analogy with common law claims. Counsel will address timing at the first advice because it often shapes strategy.
How are these claims funded?
We quote fixed fees for advice and drafting and a brief fee plus refreshers for hearings. Applications for interim injunctions are quoted separately because of the urgency and the cross undertaking in damages involved.