“Half-secret trusts valid if terms communicated before or contemporaneously with will execution.”
A testatrix left property by will to trustees 'for purposes which I have already communicated to them'. The question arose whether this half-secret trust was valid and enforceable, particularly regarding the timing of when the trust purposes had been communicated to the trustees.
Whether a half-secret trust could be valid when the will indicated that trust purposes had been communicated, and what requirements applied to the timing of such communication in half-secret trusts versus fully secret trusts.
The court held that half-secret trusts could be valid but that the communication of trust terms must occur before or at the time of executing the will, not after, as this would contradict the will's statement that purposes had 'already' been communicated.
This case is crucial for understanding the different rules applying to secret and half-secret trusts. It clarifies the timing requirements for half-secret trusts and helps practitioners understand the practical differences in how these trust arrangements must be structured.
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OSCOLA Citation
Re Snowden [1979] Ch 528
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