Taylor v Tapper
| Jurisdiction | Jamaica |
| Judge | V. Harris, J |
| Judgment Date | 07 July 2017 |
| Neutral Citation | [2017] JMSC Civ 101 |
| Docket Number | CLAIM NO. 2015 HCV 02243 |
| Court | Supreme Court (Jamaica) |
| Date | 07 July 2017 |
[2017] JMSC Civ. 101
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF JUDICATURE OF JAMAICA
IN THE CIVIL DIVISION
Harris, J.
CLAIM NO. 2015 HCV 02243
Ms. Coleasia Edmondson instructed by Henlin Gibson Henlin for the Claimant
Mr. John Jacobs and Mr. Everton Dewar instructed by John W. Jacobs for the Defendant.
Equity — Constructive Trust — Division of Property — Beneficial interest in properties — Unmarried couple — Common intention — Requirement of detriment
COR: V. Harris, J
On June 17, 2016, the claimant, Ms Marriette Taylor filed an Amended Fixed Date Claim Form seeking the following orders from the Court:
- ) A declaration that the Defendant Horace Dazel Tapper holds his share and or/all that property located at Lot number 179 Bella Vista Kingston 9 in the parish of Saint Andrew, registered at Volume 1057 Folio 959 in the Register Book of Titles on trust for the Claimant Marriette Taylor; 2) The property located at Lot number 179 Bella Vista Kingston 9 in the parish of Saint Andrew, registered at Volume 1057 Folio 959 in the Register Book of Titles be transferred into the Claimant's name only; 3) A declaration that the Claimant is entitled to a 100% interest in the business Buff Bay Hardware and Auto Supplies located in Buff Bay, Portland and registered under the sole name of the Defendant (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Business’) inclusive of its income and its capital assets howsoever and wheresoever situate, as at the date of this Order; 4) An Order that the Business including its income, profits and assets is to be valued by a reputable Valuator as at the date of the Order 5) The said valuation report is to be provided within ninety days of the date of this Order; 6) The costs of the valuators are to be borne in equal shares by the parties hereto; 7) That the Registrar is empowered to sign any and all documents necessary to bring into effect the said sale, should the Defendant fail to do so. 8) Costs to the Claimant 9) Liberty to apply; and 10) Such further and other relief as this Honourable Court may deem just.
The claimant Ms Marriette Taylor and the defendant Mr. Dazel Alexander Tapper were involved in an intimate relationship for over twenty years. Their relationship deteriorated and given the evidence I have heard it would be fair to say that it came to an acrimonious end in or around the year 2010.
When the parties met, Mr. Tapper was a businessman who operated three (3) “Lumber Yards”. Ms Taylor was attending Business College and she was unemployed.
In 1996 Mr. Tapper purchased a parcel of land at Buff Bay in the parish of Portland. He constructed a building which was used as a hardware store (the hardware/the business). The business was registered as Twin City Hardware up to November 2014 when it was re-registered by Ms Taylor as its proprietor in the name Buff Bay Hardware and Auto Supplies on November 18, 2014. It is agreed that all the funds to acquire the land, construct the building and stock the hardware were provided by Mr. Tapper. He is the sole registered owner of this property.
Ms Taylor worked at the hardware from it commenced operations. Her duties included paying, hiring and firing employees, as well as, replenishing the stock. It would be fair to say that her functions were consistent with that of a manager.
On June 25, 2002 a parcel of land located at 179 Bella Vista, Red Hills. Kingston 9 in the parish of St. Andrew and registered at Volume 1057 Folio 959 in the Register Book of Titles was transferred to the parties jointly as tenants in common. A house, which is still unfinished, was constructed on the property and the claimant currently resides there.
Ms Taylor maintained that she was involved in a common-law relationship with the defendant. She stated that the parties had lived together as man and wife at the Bella Vista property for a period of eight (8) years before they parted. However, this was denied by Mr. Tapper who was adamant that during their relationship he was married and lived with his wife in St. Catherine. Ms Taylor, he said, was well aware that he was married. Ms Taylor denied this. Mr. Tapper described their liaison as a “visiting relationship.” He denied sharing a common-law relationship or cohabiting with Ms Taylor.
There is no dispute that the Bella Vista Property was purchased by Mr. Tapper. Ms Taylor's evidence was that Mr. Tapper paid a million dollars ($1,000,000.00) towards the purchase price but she contributed to the closing costs. Mr. Tapper denied this. His evidence was that he gave the money to Ms Taylor to pay for the closing costs and that was why the receipt was issued in her name.
Ms Taylor said that the funds to pay for the property came from the fruits of her hard labour at the hardware. She testified that although Mr. Tapper's name was placed on the title, it was agreed between them before it was purchased that the property was hers and hers alone.
She maintained that she paid for the construction of the house in its entirety. The money to do so again came from the hardware, as well as, two trucks that her brother had sent to her from overseas. One of those trucks, she said, was contracted to work on Highway 2000 in 2008. The construction materials were obtained from the hardware at Buff Bay.
Ms Taylor said that she had no problem footing the entire construction costs of the house because it was agreed that not only did the house belong to her but Mr. Tapper treated her as his ‘wife’ and they were business partners. The construction of the house, she said, had cost her about Ten Million Dollars ($10,000,000.00) so far.
She said that she supervised the construction, hired and paid all the workmen. Mr. Tapper, Ms Taylor indicated, contributed approximately five percent (5%) of the construction cost by providing a few bags of cement and had very little to do with the construction of the house. That was because he openly acknowledged that the house was hers.
It was also her evidence that Mr. Tapper moved out of the house in November 2010. He told her that the house belonged to her and he was not interested in it because he had other houses that he could live in.
Mr. Tapper on the other hand stated that he paid the full purchase price for the land which he said was acquired as an investment. It was his intention to build a house on the property, sell it and use the proceeds of the sale to build other houses to sell. He said that it was never intended that either he or Ms Taylor would live there.
He maintained that Ms Taylor's name was placed on the title as a mere convenience because her father, who was a contractor, would only assist with building the house at a much reduced price if Ms Taylor's name was on the title. She neither contributed to the acquisition of the property nor the construction of the house.
Mr. Tapper deposed that he purchased all the materials that were used to construct the house and paid all the workmen, except on occasions when he would give Ms Taylor money and instructions to either purchase materials or pay the workmen. He asserted that his nephew constructed the building and as such, there was no need for the claimant to oversee the construction. Mr. Tapper said that he has spent over Fifteen Million Dollars ($15,000,000.00) in construction costs so far.
It was Mr. Tapper's contention that he allowed Ms Taylor to occupy the house while it was under construction after she told him that she had a dispute with her uncle, with whom she resided, and needed somewhere to stay. This was denied by Ms Taylor. While she admitted that during the construction of the house she had an argument with her uncle, she was adamant that she was not just “allowed” to live at the Bella Vista property. She insisted that the property belonged to her, the house was constructed by her and that Mr. Tapper told not only the construction workers but also her friends that “Mar (referring to the claimant) is building her house”. Mr. Tapper strongly denied this aspect of the evidence.
Mr. Tapper exhibited receipts for the construction materials which were issued by Lumber Depot, a hardware store in Papine, St. Andrew. On some of those receipts, there were several purchases made for zinc. Ms Taylor asserted that the receipts that were exhibited by Mr. Tapper were representative of materials he purchased for his hardware stores and not for the construction of the house at Bella Vista. She indicated that the roof of the house was constructed of decor tiles and not zinc. Mr. Tapper met this aspect of the evidence by agreeing that in fact the materials for the construction of the house, as well as, his hardware stores were purchased together. He also stated that the zinc was purchased to construct a shed to hold the building materials.
Ms Taylor exhibited a letter that Mr. Tapper wrote to her. In that letter he spoke of putting her in business and her contribution to the establishment and success of the hardware. He also spoke about the Bella Vista property. That letter, Ms Taylor said, clearly revealed that it was Mr. Tapper's intention from the outset that the hardware (land, building and business) and Bella Vista belonged to her. Mr. Tapper on the other hand stated that the letter contained expressions of his love for her. It was also a desperate attempt to save their troubled relationship and ought not to be construed that he intended to “gift” both properties and the hardware business to her.
Mr. Tapper owns a total of three hardware stores. They are the Buff Bay Hardware and Auto Supplies, Tapper's Hardware in Mineral Heights in the parish of Clarendon and Tapper's...
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