Pascoe v Turner
Where a man told his partner that the house was hers and she spent her savings on it, the court ordered him to transfer the house to her.
Facts
Mr Pascoe and Mrs Turner lived together in his house. When he left her for another woman, he told her that the house and everything in it were hers. Relying on that assurance, and to his knowledge, she spent a substantial part of her limited savings on redecoration, improvements and repairs to the house. He never transferred the house to her, and later gave her notice to leave and sought possession.
Legal principle
The Court of Appeal held that Mrs Turner was entitled to have the house transferred to her. Cumming-Bruce LJ said that the court must decide what is the minimum equity to do justice to her. A licence to occupy the house for life would not protect her adequately, because Mr Pascoe had shown that he was determined to evict her by any means, and she could not raise money on the security of the house. The only way to give her security was to order him to convey the freehold to her.
Related cases on contracts for land and proprietary estoppel
- Cobbe v Yeoman's Row Management Ltd [2008] UKHL 55, [2008] 1 WLR 1752
- Crabb v Arun District Council [1976] Ch 179
- Davies v Davies [2016] EWCA Civ 463
- Dillwyn v Llewelyn (1862) 4 De GF & J 517
- Firstpost Homes Ltd v Johnson [1995] 1 WLR 1567
- Gillett v Holt [2001] Ch 210
- Guest v Guest [2022] UKSC 27
- Habberfield v Habberfield [2019] EWCA Civ 890
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This summary is for study and revision and is not legal advice. Although our case summaries are checked for accuracy, we do not guarantee that they are free from errors or omissions. Always read the full judgment for the court's reasoning.
