Also known as: equitable property interest · equitable interests in property · beneficial interests · equitable title
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A beneficial ownership right recognized in equity when legal title is held by another. Such interests typically arise from a trust or a specifically enforceable contract for the sale of land under which the purchaser gains possession and the right to compel conveyance of legal title upon completing payments.
Erika Echevarria signed an installment land contract to buy a warehouse from Everest Holdings. She took possession and paid forty percent of the price over three years. When Everest claimed forfeiture after one late payment, Erika argued her payments and possession created an interest that required foreclosure proceedings instead.
Emma Erickson created a trust directing Elemental Pharmaceuticals to hold shares for the benefit of her two adult children. The trustee was to distribute dividends annually. After the company declared a large dividend, the children asserted their rights to receive the payments under the trust terms.
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Eric Espinoza held a life estate in farmland under his aunt's will, with remainder to his cousins. Rising equipment costs made continued farming unprofitable. Eric petitioned the court to sell the land and invest the proceeds so the remaindermen could still receive value at his death.
Elena Estrada executed declarations stating she held shares in trust for her nephew. She retained voting rights and the power to revoke. After her death, the nephew claimed the shares passed outside her estate under the declarations.
Edgewater Capital invested heavily in gathering market data that it sold to subscribers. A competitor began copying the data and reselling it at a lower price. Edgewater sought an injunction claiming an equitable interest in the information it had compiled.
Esther Eisenberg discovered that paintings she once owned had been stolen decades earlier and later sold to a gallery. She sued the current possessor for return of the works. The possessor raised a statute-of-limitations defense based on when the paintings left her possession.
The buyer receives equitable title and possession while the seller retains legal title until the purchase price is paid in full. This split allows the buyer to enforce the contract in equity for specific performance upon completing payments.
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They are the beneficial interests expressly provided in the terms of the trust. These interests define the rights of income, principal, or other enjoyment that equity will protect against the trustee.
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Yes. A settlor may convey legal title to a trustee and create enforceable equitable interests for business beneficiaries so long as no statute forbids the trust's purpose or duration.
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No. Marital property remains marital after transfer to a trust because the trust merely alters the form of legal title without reclassifying the underlying ownership interests between the spouses.
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…be heard to say so in a court of equity, where the question is one of unfair competition. The case presents no elements of equitable title or of breach of trust. The only possible reason for resort to a court of equity in a case like this is that the remedy which the law gives is inadequate. If the plaintiff has no legal cause…