The Coomber family sold beer in Battersea. Coomber Senior had increasingly relied on his second son. After his father’s death, the second son continued to run the business. His mother shortly afterwards assigned both the licence and the premises to him. After the mother’s death the older son asked the court to transfer the business and its premises brought back into her estate, saying that, as manager for his mother, the second son was in a fiduciary relationship with her and, as such,was presumed to have used undue influence in dealing with his beneficiary.
Held: The fact that the mother was following what she took to have been her late husband’s wishes was adequate ground for finding for the second son. Also the mother had received adequate legal advice. It was impossible to leap from the label ‘fiduciary relationship’ to the conclusion that all the incidents of an express trusteeship applied. All sorts of relations could be called fiduciary relations by reason of elements of confidence, trust and dependence.
Fletcher Moulton LJ: ‘It is said that the son was the manager of the stores and therefore was in a fiduciary relationship to his mother. This illustrates in a most striking form the danger of trusting to verbal formulae. Fiduciary relations are of many different types; they extend from the relation of myself to an errand boy who is bound to bring me back my change up to the most intimate and confidential relations which can possibly exist between one party and another where the one is wholly in the hands of the other because of his infinite trust in him. All these are cases of fiduciary relations, and the Courts have again and again, in cases where there has been a fiduciary relation, interfered and set aside acts which, between persons in a wholly independent position, would have been perfectly valid. Thereupon in some minds there arises the idea that if there is any fiduciary relation whatever any of these types of interference is warranted by it. They conclude that every kind of fiduciary relation justifies every kind of interference. Of course that is absurd. The nature of the fiduciary relation must be such that it justifies the interference. … In my opinion there was absolutely nothing in the fiduciary relations of the mother and the son with regard to this house which in any way affected this transaction.’ and
‘All that is necessary is that some independent person, free from any taint of the relationship, or of the consideration of interest which would affect the act, should put clearly before the person what are the nature and the consequences of the act. It is for adult persons of competent mind to decide whether they will do an act, and I do not think that independent and competent advice means independent and competent approval. It simply means that the advice shall be removed entirely from the suspected atmosphere; and that from the clear language of an independent mind, they should know precisely what they are doing.’
Judges:
Fletcher Moulton LJ
Citations:
[1911] 1 Ch 723
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Appeal from – Re Coomber, Coomber v Coomber ChD 1911
A father had been assisted in his business by his second son. After the father’s death, the mother transferred the business assets to that second son. After her death, the elder son sought the transfer of those assets back into her estate, saying . .
Cited by:
Appealed to – Re Coomber, Coomber v Coomber ChD 1911
A father had been assisted in his business by his second son. After the father’s death, the mother transferred the business assets to that second son. After her death, the elder son sought the transfer of those assets back into her estate, saying . .
Cited – Murad and Another v Al Saraj and Another CA 29-Jul-2005
An account of profits is available without proof of loss, and the onus is upon the defaulting party to show that profits are not ones for which he should account . .
Cited – Halton International Inc (Holding) and Another v Guernroy Ltd ChD 9-Sep-2005
Parties had entered into a shareholders’ agreement as to voting arrengemets within a company. Thay disputed whether votes had been used in reach of that agreement, particularly as to the issue of new shares and their allotment, but the court now . .
Cited – Rolls-Royce Power Engineering Plc and Another v Ricardo Consulting Engineers Ltd TCC 2-Dec-2003
. .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Trusts, Undue Influence
Updated: 31 July 2022; Ref: scu.222820