Co-ownership and Joint Owner Disputes

A de-facto couple jointly purchased a house and were registered on the property title as tenants-in-common. The relationship later broke down and there was a dispute about the contributions made towards the property. In turn, this affected the portion of proceeds to which each was entitled upon the sale of the property.

A widower paid around $30,000 for extensions to a home that was jointly owned by their son and daughter-in-law. Although the extensions were made to provide permanent accommodation for him, the son’s relationship later broke down. The Court was required to determine if the widower was entitled to recover the monies he had contributed towards the family home.

A boyfriend made various contributions towards a property purchased by his girlfriend, including payment of part of the deposit and the payment of a number of mortgage installments. After their break-up, the boyfriend claimed the return of the monies he had contributed towards the girlfriend’s property.

Business partners operating an accountancy practice purchased a commercial unit (from where they operated their business). After the business relationship “soured”, disputes arose as to the respective rights of the partners. Two of the major questions concerned the use and occupation of the unit and the right to sell the property on the open market.

A father bought a house, promising to transfer it to his daughter if she spent money on the renovations of the house and also took care of it. The father later reneged on the agreement, so the daughter took legal action to claim an interest or an entitlement in the house.