Beneficial ownership and detriment

Considers the factors which contribute to a court finding that a cohabitee has a beneficial interest in property, in particular the detriment which is required to establish a constructive trust, with reference to the Chancery Division decision in Levi v Levi and previous case law. Outlines the provisions on express or inferred common intention. Considers whether a loan of money from the non-owning to the owning cohabitant, made at a lower level than commercial loans, towards the purchase the property was sufficient detriment to entitle her to proceeds of sale from the property.

Resulting trusts, joint borrowers and beneficial share

Reviews case law illustrating the courts' approach to beneficial ownership of property purchased in joint name by means of a joint mortgage but without any declaration of beneficial interest, the resulting trust and joint beneficial interest presumptions. Contrast the approach adopted in cases where one party made no contribution to the mortgage payments with those where both parties made a contribution. Highlights the courts' treatment of the right to buy discount afforded tenant purchasers and property purchased as a commercial venture rather than a home.

Showing interest

Comments on the Chancery Division judgment in Jones v Kernott on the beneficial interests of former cohabiting partners in their family home. Considers whether the partners must have intended to vary their shares when the man stopped paying the mortgage, bought a house in his own name and went to live there. Discusses whether the court could take into account what was considered fair between the partners based on the whole course of dealing, including non-payment of maintenance for children.

Urgent review

Explains the rights of mortgagees to take possession of and sell property where mortgagors fall into arrears, considering the application of the provisions of the Administration of Justice Act 1970 allowing courts to adjourn or stay proceedings to allow borrowers to meet their obligations under the mortgage. Highlights the Chancery Division ruling in Horsham Properties Group Ltd v Clark, in which the property was sold without vacant possession and an action taken for possession of the property from the mortgagors as trespassers, which meant that the 1970 Act did not apply. Notes the concerns of the Council of Mortgage Lenders which may lead to a review of the law. [from Legal Journals Index]

Deal or no deal

Discusses the pre-action protocol for mortgage possession claims which came into effect on November 19, 2008, highlighting the situations in respect of which it is suggested the lender "considers" not starting proceedings and the lenders entitlement to be informed of progress on the sale of the property. Reviews the guidance on mortgages and arrears issued by the Council for Mortgage Lenders, aimed at assisting lenders in complying with the Financial Services Agency's Mortgage Conduct of Business Rules Pt 13. [From Legal Journals Index]

Arrears end

Considers the proposed pre-action protocol for mortgage arrears aimed at residential lenders and intended to restrict their ability to seek possession. Includes responses to the Civil Justice Council's consultation, which ended in May 2008, with particular emphasis on the objections of the Council of Mortgage Lenders. [From Legal Journals Index]

No more nonsense

Discusses the approach of the courts to the quantification of beneficial interests in the family home in the event of a relationship breakdown. Assesses the clarification provided by the Court of Appeal ruling in Fowler v Barron on whether the respondent was the sole beneficial owner of a property purchased with his former partner, by means of a significant cash contribution from him and a mortgage in both their names, focusing on whether he could rebut the presumption that they held the property as joint tenants in equity where it was registered in joint names. [From Legal Journals Index]

Watching the clock

Discusses the implications of the Court of Appeal ruling in Ashe v National Westminster Bank Plc on whether a mortgagee's right to possession ran from the date that the legal charge was made over property, meaning that attempts to enforce possession 12 years after the mortgage was agreed were statute barred. Considers the reasons for banks to delay possession, the application of adverse possession rules in this context and the issue of public interest. Advises mortgagees on the benefits of limiting rights to possession to only become actionable when mortgagors are in default to avoid claims becoming statue barred. [From Legal Journals Index]

The mortgagee's duties on sale

Discusses the remedies available to mortgage lenders when borrowers default on their mortgage repayments. Examines aspects of the mortgagee's duty of care to the mortgagor when choosing to sell the property in terms of the timing of the sale, the mode of sale, the price obtained, and the sale of a commercial property to a party associated with the mortgagor. [From Legal Journals Index]

Constructive notice and independent legal advice: a study of lending institution practice

Cases on when lending institutions will be put on inquiry as to circumstances giving rise to presumption of undue influence, and results of research on lending practice of residential mortgage lenders in light of case law. [From Legal Journals Index]

Relational dimensions of corporate governance in translation: networked governance in China and India

The effectiveness of corporate governance mechanisms has been a subject of academic research for many decades. Although the large majority of corporate governance studies prior to mid 1990s were based on data from developed market economies such as the U.S., U.K. and Japan, in recent years researchers have begun examining corporate governance in transition economies. A comparison of China and India offers a unique environment for analyzing the effectiveness of corporate governance. First, both countries state-owned enterprise (SOE) reform strategies hinges on the Modern Enterprise System characterized by the separation of ownership and control. Ownership of an SOE’s assets is distributed among the government, institutional investors, managers, employees, and private investors. Effective control rights are assigned to management, which generally has a very small, or even nonexistent ownership stake. This distinctive shareholding structure creates conflict of interest not only between management (insiders) and outside investors but also between large shareholders and minority investors. Moreover, because both governments desire to retain some control—in part through partial retained ownership of commercialized SOEs, further conflicts arise between politicians and firms. Second, directors in publicly listed firms in both countries are predominantly drawn from institutions with significant non-market objectives: the government and other state enterprises, particularly in China, and extended families, particularly in India. As a result, the effectiveness of internal governance mechanisms, such as the number of independent directors on the board and the number of independent supervisors on the supervisory committee, are likely to be quiet limited, although this has yet to be fully evaluated. Third, because of the political nature of the privatization process itself, typical external governance mechanisms, such as debt (in conjunction with appropriate bankruptcy procedures), takeover threats, legal protection of investors, product market competition, etc., have not been effective. Bank loans have traditionally been viewed as grants from the state designed to bail out failing firms. State-owned banks retain monopoly or quasi-monopoly positions in the banking sector and profit is not their overriding objective. If political favor is deemed appropriate, subsidized loans, rescheduling of overdue debt or even outright transfer of funds can be arranged with SOEs (soft budget constraints). In addition, a market for private, non-bank debt is limited in India and has yet to be established China. There is no active merger or takeover activity in Chinese stock markets to discipline management. Information available in the capital markets is insufficient to keep at arm’s length of the corporate decisions. In light of the above peculiarities, China and India share many of the typical institutional characteristics as a transition economy, including poor legal protection of creditors and investors, the absence of an effective takeover market, an underdeveloped capital market, a relative inefficient banking system and significant interference of politicians in firm management. Su (2005) finds that the extent of political interference, managerial entrenchment and institutional control can help explain corporate dividend policies and post-IPO financing choices in this situation. Allen et al. (2005) demonstrate that standard corporate governance mechanisms are weak and ineffective for publicly listed firms while alternative governance mechanisms based on reputation and relationship have been remarkably effective in the private sector. Because the peculiarities are significant in this context, the differences in the political-economies of the two countries are likely to be evident in such relational terms. In this paper we explore the peculiarities of corporate governance in this transitional environment through a systematic examination of certain aspects of these reputational and relationship dimensions. Utilising the methods of social network analysis we identify the inter-organisational relationships at board level formed by equity holdings and by shared directors. Using data drawn from the Orbis database we map these relations among the 3700 largest firms in India and China respectively and identify the roles played in these relational networks by the particularly characteristic institutions in each case. We find greatly different social network structures in each case with some support in these relational dimensions for their distinctive features of governance. Further, the social network metrics allow us to considerably refine proxies for political interference, managerial entrenchment and institutional control used in earlier econometric analysis.

Sovereign rescheduling probabilities in emerging markets: a comparison with credit rating agencies' ratings

This study estimates default probabilities of 124 emerging countries from 1981 to 2002 as a function of a set of macroeconomic and political variables. The estimated probabilities are then compared with the default rates implied by sovereign credit ratings of three major international credit rating agencies (CRAs) – Moody's Investor's Service, Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings. Sovereign debt default probabilities are used by investors in pricing sovereign bonds and loans as well as in determining country risk exposure. The study finds that CRAs usually underestimate the risk of sovereign debt as the sovereign credit ratings from rating agencies are usually too optimistic.

Impacts of wildlife on household food security and income in northeastern Tanzania

We evaluated the impacts of wildlife on household food security and income in three semi-arid villages adjacent to Lake Manyara National Park (LMNP) and Mkomazi Game Reserve (MGR) in Northeastern Tanzania. Survey data were collected using both household interviews and human-wildlife conflict related archive information from the village government offices. Crop destruction by wildlife influenced both household food security and cash income. Crop damage to households was, on average, 0.08 ton/annum, equivalent to two months household loss of food and reduced household cash income by 1.3%. A combination of measures is proposed as incentives for conservation. These include provision of economic incentives, soft loans to initiate non-farm (e.g., ecotourism, business enterprises) projects to ease dependency on natural resources, increasing of reserves buffer zones and fencing of reserves.

La ruptura de una economía moral y las deslegitimación de las deudas hipotecarias

In Spain, during the recent housing bubble, purchasing a home seemed the most advantageous strategy to access housing, and there was a wide social consensus about the unavoidability of mortgage indebtedness. However, such consensus has been challenged by the financial and real-estate crisis. The victims of home repossessions have been affected by the transgression of several principles, such as the fair compensation for effort and sacrifice, the prioritisation of basic needs over financial commitments, the possibility of a second chance for over-indebted people, or the State's responsibility to guarantee its citizens' livelihood. Such principles may be understood as part of a moral economy, and their transgression has resulted in the emergence of a social movement, the Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca (PAH), that is questioning the legitimacy of mortgage debts. The article reflects on the extent to which the perception of over-indebtedness and evictions as unfair situations can have an effect on the reproduction of the political-economic system, insofar the latter is perceived as able or unable to repair injustice.

An Investigation into the Link between UK Credit Union Characterisitics, Location and their Success

The unique characteristics of credit unions reduces the information asymmetry that is prevalent in credit making decisions, enabling them to provide loans where other financial institutions cannot. This makes them a potential tool in the fight against financial exclusion. Yet, the UK credit union movement is not regarded as being successful, even though there is evidence of much financial exclusion. This study is cross sectional in form, and evaluates characteristics that may contribute to the success of the UK credit union movement at national and regional level, in 2000. The findings are used to consider the impact of recent regulatory changes on the movement. The key findings are that there is a significant relationship between the success of a credit union, its size and the deprivation of the ward from which it sources its members. More specifically, larger credit unions and those located in more affluent wards, are more successful. Affiliation to the Irish League of Credit Unions and having a common bond of occupation, are also found to be contributing factors to credit union success. These results are taken as providing support for the recent changes implemented by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), which is likely to result in the emergence of larger credit unions (through mergers), run by appropriately qualified persons, serving a more mixed-income membership base. It is, however, noted that the history of the UK movement is one of missed opportunities and only time will tell whether credit unions have the wherewithal to accept current opportunities.