Grant v Edwards [1986] 3 WLR 114  Court of Appeal

Mr Edwards, the defendant, purchased a house for £5,490 in Dec 1969. The house was conveyed into Mr Edward's name and that of his brother. Mr Edwards had told the claimant, Mrs Grant who was pregnant with his child, that her name should not be added to the legal title as it may affect her divorce. The deposit of £550 was provided by Mr Edwards alone and the remainder was raised by two mortgages. Mr Edwards paid the mortgage installments for the first mortgage. There was some dispute as to repayment of the second mortgage. Mrs Grant did however, make substantial contributions to the housekeeping which enabled Mr Edwards to meet the mortgage instalments.

Held:

Mrs Grant was entitled to half of the beneficial interest under a constructive trust. There was a common intention that she was to have a share in the property. She had acted to her detriment by making substantial contributions to the household expenses which she would not have done unless she had believed that she would have an interest in the house.

Nourse LJ:

 

  1. "From the above facts and figures it is in my view an inevitable inference that the very substantial contribution which the plaintiff made out of her earnings after August 1972 to the housekeeping and to the feeding and to the bringing up of the children enabled the defendant to keep down the installments payable under both mortgages out of his own income and, moreover, that he could not have done that if he had had to bear the whole of the other expenses as well. For example, in 1973; when he and the plaintiff were earning about £1200 each, the defendant had to find a total of about £643 between the two mortgages. I do not see how he would have been able to do that had it not been for the plaintiff's very substantial contribution to the other expenses.... In the circumstances, it seems that it may properly be inferred that the plaintiff did make substantial indirect contributions to the installments payable under both mortgages."

     

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