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Disputes definition

What does Disputes mean? In legal practice, disputes are disagreements giving rise to potential legal rights and remedies between parties, addressed through dispute resolution including litigation, arbitration and ADR such as mediation and negotiation. The term is descriptive rather than a defined statutory concept; the substantive rights and procedures arise from statute and common law. Typical features include identification of the cause of action, applicable limitation periods, choice of jurisdiction and forum, compliance with pre-action protocols or pre-action correspondence, disclosure/discovery, evidence, settlement, costs and enforcement. Usage is broadly consistent across England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland, though civil procedure differs: CPR in England...

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Trustee investment disputes: duties, standard investment criteria, breach, causation, quantum, defences, procedure, pensions, land and ESG (England and Wales)

Practice notes
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Examples of claims against trustees for breach of investment duties include:

  • delay—where the trustee is slow to deploy trust capital
  • poor investment choices—e.g. reckless exposure to high-risk, undiversified holdings
  • unauthorised Investments—such as disregarding a mandate to invest only in specified assets
  • not investing the trust fund as required

Trustees' powers of investment

Trustees should confine themselves to authorised investments. They must consider both the statutory general power of investment and any extra powers, exclusions, or limits set out in the trust instrument.

The “general power of investment” permits trustees to make any kind of investment they could make if absolutely entitled to the trust assets. An exception applies to “investments in land other than in Loans secured on land”, which are governed by a separate provision (see “Investments in land” below).

This general power sits alongside powers conferred other than under the Trustee Act 2000 (TrA 2000), for instance by a trust deed, and remains subject to any limitation imposed by the relevant trust instrument (at least, one introduced after 3 August 1961)...

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Richard Selwyn Sharpe
Richard Selwyn Sharpe

Senior chancery junior whose practice covers the Northern and North Eastern circuits. Specialist in property disputes, contested wills and trusts.

Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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