The Property (Relationships) Act 1976 and Trusts: Proposals for Reform

Victoria University of Wellington Law Review 47, pp 443-462 [2016]

20 Pages Posted: 4 Mar 2019

See all articles by Nicola Peart

Nicola Peart

Faculty of Law, University of Otago

Date Written: 2016

Abstract

Trusts often have the effect of undermining the social aims of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976. In the absence of legislative action, the courts have been sympathetic to a range of arguments aimed at accessing trust assets that would have been subject to division between the parties but for the trust. None of these judicial responses adequately addresses the current deficiencies of the Property (Relationships) Act or the potential detriment to trusts and their beneficiaries. This paper considers a range of potential reforms and argues that any reform should seek to strike a balance between the social aims of a relationship property regime and the right of owners to structure their property interests as they wish.

Keywords: Trust Law, Property Law, Relationship Property

JEL Classification: K00, K11

Suggested Citation

Peart, Nicola, The Property (Relationships) Act 1976 and Trusts: Proposals for Reform (2016). Victoria University of Wellington Law Review 47, pp 443-462 [2016], Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3333540

Nicola Peart (Contact Author)

Faculty of Law, University of Otago ( email )

PO Box 56
Dunedin North
Dunedin, Otago 9016
New Zealand
6434798859 (Phone)
6434798855 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.otago.ac.nz/law/staff/nicola_peart.html

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