The widow of a Saudi king has won a court battle to retain ownership of a mansion on one of London’s most expensive streets.
Princess Aljawarah Bint Ibrahim Abdulaziz Alibrahim, widow of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, has been embroiled in years of litigation with a Liechtenstein-based foundation set up to hold the international residences of the Saudi Royal family.
She owns Kenstead Hall, a mansion on The Bishops Avenue, near Hampstead Heath. The street is nicknamed “Billionaires’ Row”, and is thought to be one of the most expensive streets in the world.
She has owned the property since it was transferred to her in 2011 by the Asturion Foundation. However, the foundation wants it back, arguing that the transfer was made without proper authority.
Specifically, according to a ruling handed down today, the foundation argues that the 2011 transfer is void because it was contrary to the foundation’s purpose and was carried out by a member of the foundation who was acting outside their authority. That person, Faisal Assaly, died in 2015.
They want the legal title to the property returned to the foundation. If that is not possible, they are seeking tens of millions of pounds in damages from the princess for unjust enrichment.
The case went to trial in July, and in a ruling handed down today trial judge Mr Justice Adam Johnson backed the princess.
In a complicated 70-page ruling, the judge ruled that the the legal purpose of the foundation cannot affect the legality of the transfer of the property unless a limitation was registered on the title at the Land Registry.
“No relevant limitation having been registered, the foundation is to be taken as having had available to it the full range of ‘owner’s rights’ usually available to an owner of a registered estate in freehold land in England, free of any limitation,” he said.
As for whether Assaly had the authority to make the transfer, the judge ruled that he did.
“Assaly was acting within the internally specified competencies in effecting the transfer of Kenstead Hall,” he said. “It is clear… that King Fahd trusted him with the responsibility to manage (and dispose of) the foundation’s assets.”
He added that Assaly had been given the necessary legal authority to make the transfer.
“My overall conclusion is that the claims by the foundation fail,” he said.
Asturion Foundation v Aljawarah Bint Ibrahim Abdulaziz Alibrahim
Business and Property Courts (Adam Johnson J) 21 December 2023
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