Potter Rees Dolan Trust Corporation Ltd v Wl & Anor

Potter Rees Dolan Trust Corporation Ltd v Wl & Anor [2023] EWCOP 19 concerned the management of funds awarded in a damages claim in England to a person now habitually resident in Poland.  The case had a tangled procedural history, caused in large part by the attitude taken by a lawyer acting for a period of time by a guardian appointed for the man in Poland.  However, ultimately, Senior Judge Hilder broadly endorsed (subject to a number of final points, including costs, to be addressed further in submissions) an approach which maintained a deputyship in place in England & Wales and a framework for transferring funds to the guardian in Poland.  As she noted: 

56. There is a degree of complexity inherent in maintaining dual management systems but, in this matter specifically, I am satisfied that any disadvantages in that complexity are outweighed by the advantages of addressing 'best interests' concerns which have arisen.

57 […] . The proposals are detailed and have clearly been carefully considered on both sides. On a broad overview, they seem to me properly to address the practical realities of [the man’s] habitual residence in Poland, [his mother’s] natural love and affection for him, and her real caring responsibilities for him. They also seem to me to contain proper safeguards for [the man] in the light of concerns raised and communication difficulties experienced to date and aired in these proceedings. 

Cross-border management of personal injury awards are a notoriously complex area, and whilst the judgment in this case is intensely fact-specific, it is helpful in confirming that there may sometimes be a place for maintenance of a dual framework to secure the interests of the person.