SCE Building Constructions Pty Ltd (in liq) v Saad

The case involved SCE Building Constructions Pty Ltd, which was in liquidation, and its directors, Saad and another individual. The dispute centred around land registered in the names of the directors, with the liquidator seeking to establish that the directors held the land on trust for the company. The dispute was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The primary legal issue was whether the presumption of a resulting trust arose due to the directors purchasing the land with company funds and whether this presumption was rebutted.

The court examined the presumption of a resulting trust, which arises when property is purchased with funds intended for another party, such as a company. In this case, the court had to determine if the directors, who were also the purchasers, held the land on trust for the company. The court also needed to consider whether the presumption of advancement, which is a rebuttal to the presumption of a resulting trust, applied in this situation. This presumption suggests that payments made by a company to its directors are gifts, unless proven otherwise.

The court concluded that the presumption of a resulting trust did apply because the land was purchased with the company's funds. However, the presumption was rebutted as the directors provided evidence that the purchase price was a gift to them. The court found that the directors had discharged the onus of proving that the presumption of a resulting trust did not apply, as they demonstrated that the purchase was a gift and not a loan or investment. Therefore, the directors were not held to be trustees of the land for the company.

The court ordered that the presumption of a resulting trust was rebutted, and the directors were entitled to retain the land as their personal property. The court did not order the directors to hold the land on trust for the company, as the presumption of a resulting trust had been successfully rebutted.