John Dilworth & Anor v Wosskow Brown Solicitors LLP & Ors
[2024] EWHC 903 (Ch)
Thomas Barry & Anor v Denis Barry
1 July 2024
[2024] EWHC 1661 (KB)
High Court
Parents lent their son a lot of money for houses. The son said it wasn't a real loan and the parents forgave it. The court looked at the evidence (bank statements, emails, what other family members said) and decided the son had to pay back the money because it was a proper loan agreement.
Key Facts
- •Claimants (parents) loaned defendant (son) over £600,000 for property purchases.
- •Defendant denies owing the money, claiming it was a family matter with no intention to create legal relations and that the loans were forgiven.
- •Claimants argue there were legally binding loan contracts.
- •The case involves multiple property transactions and significant family disputes.
- •A covert recording of a phone conversation between the defendant and his mother is a key piece of evidence.
Legal Principles
Intention to create legal relations is presumed absent in domestic arrangements, but this presumption is rebuttable.
Balfour v Balfour, Jones v Padavatton
Intention is judged objectively, considering the factual background known to both parties.
Hamid v Francis Bradshaw Partnership
For a waiver to be effective, it must be clear and unequivocal, and the other party must alter their position in reliance.
Woodhouse AC Israel Cocoa v Nigerian Produce Marketing, Collier v P & MJ Wright
Assessing witness credibility involves considering objective facts, motives, and probabilities.
Rancom Security Ltd v Girling
Outcomes
Judgment for the claimants.
The court found that the parties intended to create legal relations and that the loans were not forgiven. The evidence supported the claimants' version of events, particularly contemporaneous documentation and the repayment patterns of other siblings.