Ranjit Singh v Harisankar Singh: Presumption of Advancement in Estate Dispute

In Ranjit Singh s/o Ramdarsh Singh v Harisankar Singh, the Court of Appeal of Singapore heard an appeal on June 29, 2021, regarding the beneficial ownership of a half share of a property. Ranjit Singh, the appellant, argued that the property belonged to their father's estate, while Harisankar Singh, the respondent, claimed it was his. The court dismissed the appeal, affirming the High Court's decision that the presumption of advancement in favor of Harisankar was not rebutted, thus granting him the beneficial interest in the property.

1. Case Overview

1.1 Court

Court of Appeal of the Republic of Singapore

1.2 Outcome

Appeal Dismissed

1.3 Case Type

Civil

1.4 Judgment Type

Ex Tempore Judgment

1.5 Jurisdiction

Singapore

1.6 Description

Appeal regarding ownership of property share. Court affirmed presumption of advancement, granting beneficial interest to son. Key issue: rebuttal of presumption.

1.7 Decision Date

2. Parties and Outcomes

Party NameRoleTypeOutcomeOutcome TypeCounsels
Ranjit Singh s/o Ramdarsh SinghAppellant, PlaintiffIndividualAppeal DismissedLost
Harisankar SinghRespondent, DefendantIndividualJudgment for RespondentWon

3. Judges

Judge NameTitleDelivered Judgment
Andrew Phang Boon LeongJustice of the Court of AppealYes
Tay Yong KwangJustice of the Court of AppealNo
Steven ChongJustice of the Court of AppealNo

4. Counsels

Counsel NameOrganization
Ranvir Kumar SinghUniLegal LLC
Twang Kern ZernCentral Chambers Law Corporation
Lam Jianhao MarkCentral Chambers Law Corporation

4. Facts

  1. Ranjit and Harisankar are brothers and co-executors of their father's estate.
  2. The dispute concerns a half share of a property at No 85 Syed Alwi Road.
  3. The half share is registered in Harisankar's name.
  4. The father paid the full purchase price of the half share.
  5. The father already owned the other half share of the property.
  6. Harisankar was the only son living with and working for the testator in Singapore.
  7. The testator retained the title deeds and had a Power of Attorney over the half share.

5. Formal Citations

  1. Ranjit Singh s/o Ramdarsh Singh v Harisankar Singh, Civil Appeal No 206 of 2020, [2021] SGCA 66
  2. Ranjit Singh s/o Ramdarsh Singh v Harisankar Singh, HC/Suit No 1005 of 2019, [2020] SGHC 243

6. Timeline

DateEvent
Civil Appeal No 206 of 2020 filed
High Court decision in [2020] SGHC 243
HC/Suit No 1005 of 2019 filed
Judgment delivered

7. Legal Issues

  1. Presumption of Advancement
    • Outcome: The court held that the presumption of advancement was not rebutted, affirming the respondent's beneficial interest in the property.
    • Category: Substantive
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Rebuttal of presumption of advancement
      • Strength of presumption of advancement
    • Related Cases:
      • [2008] 2 SLR(R) 108

8. Remedies Sought

  1. Declaration of beneficial ownership of property

9. Cause of Actions

  • No cause of actions

10. Practice Areas

  • Estate Litigation
  • Trust Litigation

11. Industries

  • No industries specified

12. Cited Cases

Case NameCourtAffirmedCitationJurisdictionSignificance
Lau Siew Kim v Yeo Guan Chye Terence and anotherCourt of AppealYes[2008] 2 SLR(R) 108SingaporeCited regarding the principle that the likelihood of a gift to one child decreases with the number of children, but this is not a strict rule.
Ranjit Singh s/o Ramdarsh Singh v Harisankar SinghHigh CourtYes[2020] SGHC 243SingaporeAffirmed the High Court's decision that the presumption of advancement was not rebutted.

13. Applicable Rules

Rule Name
No applicable rules

14. Applicable Statutes

Statute NameJurisdiction
No applicable statutes

15. Key Terms and Keywords

15.1 Key Terms

  • Presumption of advancement
  • Presumption of resulting trust
  • Beneficial interest
  • Co-executor
  • Power of Attorney
  • Half Share
  • Testator

15.2 Keywords

  • Presumption of advancement
  • estate
  • property
  • beneficial ownership
  • Singapore
  • family law

17. Areas of Law

Area NameRelevance Score
Presumption of Advancement80
Family Law75
Wills and Probate60
Estate Administration55
Property Law50
Chancery and Equity40

16. Subjects

  • Estate
  • Trusts
  • Property Law