Re Bowen;

The High Court of Australia considered the application of the *Bankruptcy Act 1966* (Cth) in *Re Bowen*. The case involved a dispute concerning the validity of a deed of assignment of a debt owed to a bankrupt. The trustee in bankruptcy sought to have the deed declared void and to recover the debt for the benefit of the bankrupt's estate.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the deed of assignment, which purported to transfer the debt from the bankrupt to a third party after the sequestration order had been made, was effective to divest the bankrupt of his interest in the debt. This required the Court to determine the effect of a sequestration order on the bankrupt's property and the extent to which a bankrupt could deal with property that vested in the trustee.

The Court reasoned that upon the making of a sequestration order, all the property of the bankrupt, including after-acquired property, vests in the trustee in bankruptcy. Consequently, any purported assignment of such property by the bankrupt after sequestration is ineffective to pass title. The Court applied the principle that a bankrupt is divested of their property, and the trustee becomes the legal owner, with the bankrupt having no further interest to assign.

The High Court held that the deed of assignment was void and that the debt remained part of the bankrupt's estate. The Court ordered that the trustee was entitled to recover the debt.