Weldon v Union Trustee Co of Australia Ltd

Weldon v Union Trustee Co of Australia Ltd concerned a dispute between the plaintiff, Weldon, and the defendant, Union Trustee Co of Australia Ltd, as trustee of the estate of the late Mr. J.B. Weldon. The case was heard by the Full Court of the Supreme Court of Victoria.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the plaintiff, as a beneficiary of the deceased's estate, was entitled to a declaration that certain shares, which had been transferred by the deceased to the defendant prior to his death, were held by the defendant on trust for the plaintiff. This question hinged on whether the transfer of shares was a valid gift or an ineffective attempt to create a trust.

The court considered the principles governing the constitution of trusts and the requirements for a valid gift. It was held that for a gift to be effective, the donor must do all that is necessary to divest themselves of the legal ownership of the property. In this instance, the deceased had not completed the necessary steps to transfer legal title of the shares to the defendant, nor had he done all that was within his power to do to effectuate the transfer. Consequently, the court found that the deceased had not divested himself of the legal ownership of the shares, and therefore, no valid trust had been constituted in favour of the plaintiff.

The court dismissed the plaintiff's appeal, upholding the decision of the primary judge.