Equity and Trusts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Equity and Trusts - Essay Example As anyone who has read Dickens, Bleak house will know, by the 18th century, equity had itself become rigid. The origins of the jurisdiction have been prevailed and the principles of equity can now be applied in every civil court in the land. One of equity’s greatest inventions has been the ‘trust’. The trust is a form of ownership that developed in England through the courts of Chancery. Trust can be defined as the written instruments that give title to or an interest in real estate. A trustee holds title on behalf of the lender, known as the beneficiary who is the legal owner. Trust law applies whenever one person has placed trust and confidence in another person to manage his or her affairs. The full force of the law of equity governs such relationships and the trust now provides a mechanism for a number of situations, family relationships, charities, pension funds, to name but a few. The common benefits that a trust offer includes are: (i) Providing financial a nd personal safeguard for family and other beneficiaries, (ii) Establishing a means of controlling or administering property, taxes, (iii) Meeting other social or commercial goals, and (iv) Postponing or avoiding unnecessary.