A gift may be recovered where it was made under the mistaken belief that the donee is someone else. The mistake must be as to a fact which, if true, would create a liability to pay .
Scott LJ said of the Kerrison case that ‘it was definitely decided by Hamilton J. and by the House of Lords that the plaintiff was entitled to recover a payment made to the defendants for the purpose of meeting an anticipated liability although he then knew that no actual liability had yet attached to him.’ The mistake of fact, in the words of Scott LJ ‘must be in some aspect or another fundamental to the transaction’
Scott LJ, Lord Greene MR
[1938] 1 KB 49, [1937] 3 All ER 92
England and Wales
Citing:
Cited – Kerrison v Glyn, Mills, Currie and Co HL 1912
The plaintiff arranged with his bankers for them to honour cheques of one Patterson and when they advised the plaintiff of the amount of the cheques so honoured, the plaintiff would pay Kessler and Co. The plaintiff paid andpound;500 to the . .
Cited by:
Cited – Regina v Gilks CACD 27-Jun-1972
The appellant had placed a bet at a betting shop on a certain horse. A horse with a similar name won, but by mistake the shop paid out on the bet. The appellant knew of the mistake, but refused to return the winnings. He now appealed against his . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Updated: 22 July 2021; Ref: scu.539757