English judge orders anonymity in international family trust dispute

31 March 2011

In a bitter dispute between members of an international family over control of their trust assets, the England & Wales High Court has ordered that the parties to the action shall remain anonymous.

The litigation is a defamation action brought by a businessman, Mr. ZAM, against his wife's sister and her husband (Mr. & Mrs TFW). The sisters (i.e. Mrs ZAM and Mrs TFW) are among the beneficiaries of some substantial IFC trusts. The published judgement conceals their nationalities; it is not even certain that the UK is their country of residence.

According to the High Court judge, Mr. Justice Tugendhat, Mr. ZAM and his employers have been receiving unpleasant communications from two individuals referred to as Y and X.These communications allege that Mr. ZAM had "misappropriated money from the trusts" and demanded the liquidation and payment of part of an investment made by the trusts and compensation for losses said to have resulted from the investment, said Mr. Justice Tugendhat. It also makes some (again unreported) accusations of other offences allegedly committed by Mr. ZAM abroad.

Y apparently claims to represent the defendants Mr. & Mrs TFW, though his identity is being withheld from the public. X is believed to be an anonymous owner of a website on which he is threatening to publish the allegations against Mr. ZAM. Mr. Justice Tugendhat said it appeared likely from Mr. ZAM's evidence that "all the communications from X and Y ... have been sent or made for and on behalf of the defendants."

Mr. ZAM duly sued Mr. & Mrs TFW for libel, through his solicitors Farrers. The judge granted him an injunction barring the defendants from repeating the allegations, which were, he said "of the most grave and serious kind". He also imposed an anonymity order on the parties, noting this was justified in law "in a case like the present, where there is a strong case for believing there to be an attempt at blackmail".