John Walsh & Ors v Peter Spence & Ors

John Walsh & Ors v Peter Spence & Ors

The court has no jurisdiction, whether under its inherent trust supervisory powers or CPR Part 64, to order third parties (such as the defendants) to deliver up documents or data (including SAGE accounting records) not owned by the charities. The SAGE system and its data are not trust property. The only documents to which the claimants are entitled are the charities' own documents, which the defendants have offered to deliver up upon payment of reasonable costs. The remainder of the claim, being in substance a request for pre-action disclosure, falls outside the scope of the court's trust jurisdiction and must be pursued, if at all, under the appropriate procedural rules for pre-action...

Parties
Claimant: John Walsh; Claimant: Brian Sutcliffe; Claimant: Keith Illingworth; Defendant: Peter Spence; Defendant: Peter Coton; Defendant: Murray Cable
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
11 September 2024
Procedural Posture
Part 8 Claim (civil, Trusts/charities) / Judgment After Trial
Outcome
Application dismissed save as to delivery up of the charities' own documents.
Legal Topics
Disclosure of Documents, Trustee Duties, Jurisdiction of Court, Pre Action Disclosure
Trusts Charity Law Civil Procedure Disclosure of Documents Trustee Duties Jurisdiction of Court Pre Action Disclosure

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Parties

John Walsh

Claimant

Brian Sutcliffe

Claimant

Keith Illingworth

Claimant

Peter Spence

Defendant

Peter Coton

Defendant

Murray Cable

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Part 8 Claim (civil, Trusts/charities) / Judgment After Trial

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the court has jurisdiction under its inherent powers or CPR Part 64 to order third parties to deliver up documents and data (including accounting records and database extracts) to trustees of charities for the purpose of preparing and auditing accounts.
  2. 2 Whether the SAGE accounting database or information contained therein is trust property or otherwise subject to disclosure to the charity trustees.
  3. 3 Whether the claim is in substance a request for pre-action disclosure outside the scope of the court's trust supervisory jurisdiction.

Ratio Decidendi

The court has no jurisdiction, whether under its inherent trust supervisory powers or CPR Part 64, to order third parties (such as the defendants) to deliver up documents or data (including SAGE accounting records) not owned by the charities. The SAGE system and its data are not trust property. The only documents to which the claimants are entitled are the charities' own documents, which the defendants have offered to deliver up upon payment of reasonable costs. The remainder of the claim, being in substance a request for pre-action disclosure, falls outside the scope of the court's trust jurisdiction and must be pursued, if at all, under the appropriate procedural rules for pre-action...

Court Disposition

Application dismissed save as to delivery up of the charities' own documents.

Orders

  • Defendants to deliver up the charities' own records (about 6 pallets of documents) upon payment of reasonable costs of collation and delivery, with liberty to apply as to disputes over scope or costs.
  • All other relief sought by the claimants is dismissed.