Track record
Greek Cathedral Trust Fund
Olivia and Steven Kempster represented the claimant trustees of the Greek Cathedral Trust Fund established in the 1880s in seeking declaratory relief in connection with the funds. The High Court decided in Fafalios & Ors v Apodiacos & Ors [2020] EWHC 1189 (Ch) that our clients had the power to direct control of the funds and that, because our clients' application was important to clarifying the correct operation of the trusts, our clients' costs should be paid from the funds held by the defendants. Read the Judgment here.(fafalios)
Prince Mukarram Jah's claim to frozen funds
Paul, Deborah Nicholls-Carr and Olivia Turner represented Prince Mukarram Jah, His Exalted Highness Nizam VIII of Hyderabad, in a dispute over funds frozen at Natwest Bank for over 70 years (the subject of a 1958 House of Lords decision Rahimtoola v Nizam of Hyderabad), involving the governments of India and Pakistan. Pakistan issued a new claim in 2013. The High Court decided in Pakistan v Natwest and Ors [2015] EWHC 55 (Ch) that the Nizam's claim to the funds should be allowed to proceed. The Judge upheld the Nizam's claim (along with those of his younger brother and India) to his grandfather's funds. Read the Judgment here.(nizam) The case was one of The Lawyer's ‘Top 20 Cases of 2019'.
Dismissal of disclosure of documents
In July 2020 we succeeded in ensuring applications to set aside the Judgment and seeking disclosure of various documents were dismissed. See the Times of India's report here.
Isle of Man trust structure
Olivia and Stephen Richards, working with Isle of Man advocates, acted for two high net worth individuals in their application to set aside a previous transfer of shares into an Isle of Man trust structure, which mistakenly resulted in adverse tax consequences. We also advised on making the relevant arrangements for minor and unborn beneficiaries. Read the Judgment here.
Jersey trust structure
Working with Jersey advocates, Olivia and Steven Kempster acted for an ultra-high net worth family in their application to reverse historic transfers of luxury London properties into a Jersey trust structure, which resulted in unintentional tax liabilities. We also advised on notifying HMRC. Read the Judgment here.