In this case the court viewed a Trust Deed to determine whether the Founder, in using the words ‘children’, ‘issue’, ‘descendant’, ‘legal descendant’ in the Trust Deed, intended to benefit adopted children and descendants. The court used the relevant law operative in 1953 when the Trust Deed was executed, being the 1937 Children’s Act, to interpret the Deed as excluding adopted children and descendants as adopted children and descendants were not expressly included in the Deed. The court believed that if the Founder had intended to include adopted children and descendants, he would have been advised at the time of the need to expressly include them. This case highlights the need for Trust Deeds, especially older Deeds, to be regularly reviewed to ensure they comply with the Founder’s wishes and current laws.
For more information on this case, read below:
Harvey NO and Others v Crawford NO and Others [2018] ZASCA 147 Trust Dee…
Harvey NO and Others v Crawford NO and Others [2018] ZASCA 147 Summary …