National Trust for Places of Historic Interest -v- Ian Geoffrey Birden (2009)

LTL 10/09/2009

On a proper construction of a share-farm agreement entered into by a farmer and the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty which owned the farm, the latter was not entitled to a share of farm subsidy payments received by the farmer which related to the period when he was farming at another farm but which included a historic element that related to three years when the farmer was farming at the trust's farm.  The case was not analogous to joint venture cases and the farmer did not hold the disputed sums on constructive trust in the thrust's favour.