Greta & Greta

The parties in this matter were Greta and Greta. The dispute concerned an application for an order for the sale of property pursuant to section 66G of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW). The application was heard by Cronin J in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether it had the power to make an order for sale under section 66G of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW) where the property in question was held on trust for a company that was in the process of being deregistered. The court was required to consider the effect of the company's deregistration on the beneficial ownership of the property and the availability of the statutory trust mechanism for sale.

Cronin J reasoned that section 66G of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW) requires the property to be held on trust for two or more persons beneficially. His Honour found that once a company is deregistered, it ceases to exist as a legal entity and therefore cannot hold a beneficial interest in property. Consequently, the property was no longer held on trust for two or more persons beneficially, as the beneficial owner was a company that no longer existed. The court applied the principle that a statutory trust under section 66G cannot subsist where there is no longer a plurality of beneficial owners.

The application for an order for sale under section 66G of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW) was dismissed.