Secret Trust of Famous Painter Found Valid

The dispute over the estate of Lucian Freud, an internationally renowned artist whom recently passed away, has been settled in a British court. The claim for recognition of a secret trust was brought by one of Freud’s daughters, Rose Pearce, and Freud’s solicitor, Diana Rawstron. The defendant, one of Freud’s sons, Paul Freud, claimed that the trust was not mentioned or validated in the will. Pearce and Rawstron stated that the trust was revealed to them by Freud, the proof of which is confidential.

A secret trust is not expressly mentioned in a will and the trustees traditionally disburse the residue to an unnamed entity, and a half-secret trust is mentioned in the will while the ultimate beneficiary still remains unnamed. Pearce and Rawstron contended that even if there was evidence of a trust, the criteria for a half-secret trust would still be met. The Judge sided with Pearce and Rawstron based on clause 6 of the will, in which they were mentioned specifically by name as trustees to jointly control the entirety of the estate.

See Ryan Mowat, Famous Painters and Secret Trusts, Dispute Resolution Law Blog, Sept. 1, 2014.

Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.