On 12 June 2013, the court unanimously overturned the decision of the Court of Appeal and ruled against a wealthy oil tycoon, Michael Prest, ordering that seven properties vested in Petrodel Resources Ltd be … Become your target audience’s go-to resource for today’s hottest topics. 0000001363 00000 n The First Instance Judge decided that s.24 of the Matrimonial Causes Act gave the Court power to treat the assets of the companies as if they were the husband's assets and so the companies could be ordered to transfer them to Mrs Prest. Those illustrations are not exhaustive but it is important to note that one such basis, that the company held its assets on resulting trust for its controller, was the basis for the remedy given to Mrs Prest. Prest (Appellant) v. Petrodel Resources Limited and . 0000009594 00000 n 0000010157 00000 n Michael Prest, founder of Petrodel Resources, had claimed that Petrodel’s assets did not belong to him and that he was £48m in debt. INTRODUCTION Rogers AJA in a New South Wales case commented "there is no common, underlying principle, which underlies the occasional decision of the courts to pierce the corporate veil". 0000003750 00000 n This is the key case where SC considered the issue of whether the court possesses a general power to pierce the corporate veil in the case where these specific legal principles do not apply. 0000007213 00000 n Piercing The Corporate Veil: Prest Vs Petrodel Resources The Supreme Court has handed down a landmark judgement in favour of Mrs Prest in high profile matrimonial dispute. The majority of commentary in the wake of Prest v. Petrodel Resources Ltd has focused on the Supreme Court’s discussion of a court’s jurisdiction to pierce the corporate veil. Introducing PRO ComplianceThe essential resource for in-house professionals. Power up your legal research with modern workflow tools, AI conceptual search and premium content sets that leverage Lexology's archive of 900,000+ articles contributed by the world's leading law firms. �)���w ƅ��d�P��ļb�J(��+dPk�o�#���@��ߒ�`t���]��V�3�}�R������)�^y���ѷ�$�������:x��p{�W�0"��9�z�masܿ�h�j.��\�b��k�_�V�N]��'�4�U^?��ϧ���e����h1��20~�����"�6e�A5�W� The “well-recognised Judgment details. 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Prest v Petrodel – a new court approach to corporate structures Background Prest v Petrodel was a “big money” divorce case, concerning assets worth in excess of £17.5million. This has overshadowed the Court’s decision to recognise a resulting trust, which achieved the same result as if the Court had pierced the corporate veil. On 12 June 2013 the UK Supreme Court delivered judgment in Prest v Petrodel, a divorce case, and decided that properties purchased in the name of companies owned and controlled by the husband were held on trust for him and thus formed part of his assets. It is also a vital component of many frauds and a shield for the proceeds of fraud that is! Appellant ) v Petrodel Resources Ltd [ 2013 ] UKSC 34 has received most attention as a the... If you would like to learn how Lexology can drive your content marketing strategy forward, please email [ protected! ], [ 99 ] Guernsey foundation is also a vital component of many frauds a... 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