🔒 Constructive Trusts in Property Law: Understanding Express and Implied Agreements

Law Sessions With Jennifer Housen’s Podcast

Subscriber-only episode

The constructive trust offers an alternative claim to resulting trusts in property disputes, often providing a greater share based on the parties' intentions rather than strict financial contributions.
• Constructive trusts arise from either express or implied agreements between parties
• Express agreement constructive trusts require detrimental reliance and subsequent denial of the agreement
• Courts attempt to give effect to the actual oral agreement, as in Eddington where a wife with 1/9 contribution was awarded 50% based on the husband's promise
• For implied agreements, courts examine the whole course of dealings between the parties
• Oxley v Hiscock established approach for one legal owner: Mrs Oxley received 40% despite ignoring legal advice about documentation
• Stack v Dowden dealt with joint legal owners: despite presumption of equal shares, Mrs Dowden received 65% based on financial arrangements
• The starting point for joint legal owners is equal shares, but this presumption can be rebutted by evidence of different intentions
💡⚖️ Let’s learn the law together—one session at a time!

Chapters

1. Introduction to Constructive Trusts (00:00:00)

2. Express Agreement Constructive Trusts (00:02:47)

3. Implied Agreement Constructive Trusts (00:05:30)

4. Oxley v Hiscock Case Analysis (00:07:13)

5. Stack v Dowden Case Analysis (00:15:00)