Law Partners Mortgages Pty Ltd (In Liquidation) v. Jeremy & Anor

In the case of Law Partners Mortgages Pty Ltd (In Liquidation) v. Jeremy & Anor, the court was tasked with determining the validity of equitable mortgages over certain properties and the corresponding liabilities of the defendants. The plaintiff, Law Partners Mortgages Pty Ltd, sought repayment of monies advanced or alternatively, an order vesting the legal estate of the properties to enable their sale. The defendants, Jeremy and another individual, were trustees of the Turner Park Shopping Village Property Unit Trust and were alleged to have procured the advancement of money on the security of property held in a personal capacity and on trust property. The mortgages in question were never registered.

The central legal issues before the court were whether the mortgages were executed by the Trust, whether the mortgage documents and other documents constituted a memorandum in writing resulting in money being advanced in reliance on them, and whether the plaintiff was an equitable mortgagee. The court needed to assess the validity of the mortgages and the extent of the plaintiff’s rights as an equitable mortgagee over the specified properties.

The court found that the mortgages were indeed executed by the Trust, as the first defendant, acting as trustee, had procured the advancement of money on the security of the properties. The court also determined that the mortgage documents and other documents did constitute a memorandum in writing, as they were sufficient to evidence the agreement and reliance on which the money was advanced. Consequently, the court concluded that the plaintiff was an equitable mortgagee, entitled to the relief sought. The court declared the plaintiff's entitlement to an equitable mortgage over the specified properties, ordered the recovery of $218,000 plus interest, and directed the creation of a legal estate in the plaintiff to facilitate the sale of the mortgaged properties. The court also ordered the removal of the caveats and mandated the plaintiff to prepare formal orders consistent with these findings.