Proprietary Estoppel: The elements of a successful claim

Proprietary estoppel is inherently difficult to prove. This is because a claim for proprietary estoppel is only likely to arise when the individual who allegedly made the assurance is either denying that they did so, or the individual has died.
When someone is threatening to claim by way of proprietary estoppel, it can stifle succession planning and/or the administration of an estate. It can also cause considerable conflict between family members. It is therefore important to understand what makes a successful proprietary estoppel claim and how you can take measures to protect yourself or your executors against having to defend one.

What does a proprietary estoppel claim need?

There are three elements to a successful claim for proprietary estoppel:

The recent case Habberfield v Habberfield [2019] is an example of a successful claim for proprietary estoppel where all these elements were proven by the claimant, who was the daughter of the deceased father. The daughter, Lucy, spent 30 years working on the dairy farm for low pay on the assurance from her parents that she would one day inherit the farm. A year before her father died, she left the business after a dispute with her sister and her father left the farm to her mother in his will.

The court ruled that Lucy had suffered a detriment, having relied on the representations made by her parents. The farm had to be sold to generate Lucy’s award of £220,000 and an additional £1.2 million for the purposes of acquiring a new dairy unit.

In this case, it is evident that she relied on the assurance/representation made by her parents in spending 30 years of her life working on this farm. She suffered detriment in foregoing other career opportunities and a better income by remaining on the farm for all those years, hence her claim was successful.

As is often the case, these disputes happen between family members, so it is especially important to take the necessary measures in your lifetime to prevent the possibility of them arising.
Individuals should seek to document all their property agreements and representations in writing. This is commonly done through a will, but, as we know, these cases often arise despite the presence of a will. Therefore, any assurance you wish to give to a family member should be done in writing. This reduces the risk of a court being persuaded that assurances or representations you made could be determined by analysis of your conduct. It also encourages individuals to focus on what they are really foregoing by making a promise.

This results in more certainty and precision as to what exactly is being promised and formalised, leaving less scope for interpretation and potentially, litigation. In proprietary estoppel claims, the evidence of other family members, friends and neighbours is often vital to the success of a claim. Individuals pondering wills and succession planning should therefore always be open and honest with those around them so that there can be no confusion as to what their wishes may or may not have been. This helps to eliminate any risk that your intentions which you convey through your conduct might be misconstrued.

If you have any concerns regarding proprietary estoppel claims or would like to seek legal advice, you can contact our Dispute Resolution department on 020 7228 0017 or using the contact form below.