Property wrangle over London tennis club

A complicated debate is ensuing about the ownership of the St Andrew’s Lawn Tennis Club’s playing courts in Cheam, London.

The land, which is worth over £1 million, belongs to trustees of the estate of the former club committee member who bought it in the 1930s and then rented it out to the tennis club members.

The club was set up by members of St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, in south London, in 1937.

However, in 2006 when “only 20 of the 91” tennis club members were also church members, the church “elders” wanted to sell the land for a profit of over £1 million. Since then an ownership debate has sparked up and lawyers have been called in.

Mr Justice Arnold said that central to the debate is a “trust deed” which was struck in 1938 when David Tweddle, secretary of the church at the time, bought the plot and rented it to the club.

Mr Tweddle died in 1953 and the judge felt that the land was held on a “resulting trust” for his estate and now the trustees should seek guidance before taking further action.

The judge also said that the debate raised legal “complexities” and would prove challenging “even for lawyers”.

IBB Solicitors has one of the largest real estate groups in West London and the South East, with expertise in commercial development, residential development, real estate finance, real estate investment and management, construction and real estate dispute resolution. Contact a member of the team by visiting the relevant service page, or you can call us on 08456 381 381 or email enquiries@ibblaw.co.uk.