Eyal Corporate Trustees Ltd - [2025] NZHC 1944

IN THE HIGH COURT OF NEW ZEALAND WELLINGTON REGISTRY

I TE KŌTI MATUA O AOTEAROA TE WHANGANUI-A-TARA ROHE

CIV-2025-485-171

[2025] NZHC 1944

UNDER Part 19 of the High Court Rules, ss 122, 124, 125 and 133 of the Trusts Act 2019 and the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court

RE

EYAL CORPORATE TRUSTEES LIMITED

as trustee of the Eyal Development Trust Applicant

Hearing: On the papers

Counsel:

L M McKeown for the Applicant

A S Cavanaugh as Counsel assisting

Judgment:

15 July 2025

Reissued:

1 October 2025

JUDGMENT OF GWYN J

[Application to approve a deed of resettlement; orders under ss 122–125 and 133 of the Trusts Act 2019]

Application

[1] This application is brought by Eyal Corporate Trustees Ltd in relation to a proposal to resettle the assets of the Eyal Development Trust (ED Trust) on the Aharoni Investment Trust (AI Trust).

[2]The applicant has applied for the following orders:

(a)approving the proposed definition of uncertain discretionary and final contingent beneficiaries of the ED Trust under the inherent jurisdiction

RE: EYAL CORPORATE TRUSTEES LIMITED [2025] NZHC 1944 [15 July 2025]

of the Court or, in the alternative, under s 133 of the Trusts Act 2019 (Act);

(b)approving a deed of resettlement on behalf of minor, future and unascertained beneficiaries of the ED Trust, under s 124 of the Act;

(c)waiving the requirement that certain discretionary beneficiaries of the ED Trust consent to the resettlement of the ED Trust on to the AI Trust, under s 125;

(d)confirming the applicant as trustee may sign the deed of resettlement and complete the resettlement, under s 122 of the Act and the inherent jurisdiction of the Court; and

(e)approving that the applicant’s costs in respect of this application are to be paid from the ED Trust’s trust fund on a solicitor-client basis.

[3] On 26 March 2025 Associate Judge Skelton granted leave to the applicant to bring the substantive application by way of originating application.1 Associate Judge Skelton also appointed Ms Cavanaugh as counsel to assist the court and to report on the interests of, and act for, the minor, future and unascertained beneficiaries and/or qualifying beneficiary trusts, in relation to the proposed resettlement.

Background

[4] Eyal Aharoni (Eyal) is the economic settlor of the ED Trust and the AI Trust. The ED Trust was settled on 7 October 2003 and the AI Trust on 10 October 2003. The applicant, Eyal Corporate Trustees Limited, is a corporate trustee which is the sole trustee of the ED Trust. It has two directors, being Eyal, and David Briscoe, partner, of Duncan Cotterill. Eyal is the sole shareholder. The applicant’s constitution requires the trustee to have at least one professional director.

1 Re Eyal Corporate Trustees Ltd HC Wellington CIV-2025-485-171, 26 March 2025.

[5] Eyal says that there are now significant assets in both trusts, largely comprising property-owning entities, and they are part of a wider asset structure including another trust settled by his wife, and a third party.

[6] Eyal has four children, Karyn,…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Eyal Corporate Trustees Ltd

Details

AGLC: Eyal Corporate Trustees Ltd [2025] NZHC 1944
Case: [2025] NZHC 1944
Decision Date: 15 July 2025

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of Eyal Corporate Trustees Ltd, the High Court of New Zealand considered an application by Eyal Corporate Trustees Limited, the trustee of the Eyal Development Trust, to approve a deed of resettlement transferring the assets of the trust to the Aharoni Investment Trust. The application included requests to interpret certain terms in the trust deed, approve the resettlement, waive consent from certain beneficiaries, and confirm the trustee's authority to execute the deed. The court had to determine the appropriate interpretation of the term "the children" in the trust deed and decide whether the proposed resettlement would benefit the trust's beneficiaries.

The court accepted the applicant's proposed interpretation of "the children" as including Eyal's children born after the trust was settled. This interpretation aligned with Eyal's intentions as the economic settlor and the context in which the trust was established. The court also directed that certain words in the trust deed relating to "siblings" be disregarded as they seemed to have been included by mistake. Regarding the resettlement, the court found that the proposed benefits, such as simplifying trust administration and reducing compliance costs, likely outweighed the potential detriments. The court approved the resettlement on behalf of minor, future, and unascertained beneficiaries and waived the requirement for consent from qualifying beneficiary trusts due to practical difficulties in obtaining their consent. The court further confirmed that the trustee could sign the deed of resettlement and complete the resettlement once the adult beneficiaries signed it. Lastly, the court ordered that the applicant's costs be paid from the trust fund.

Orders