Invalid exercises of powers and defective changes of trustees: what can go wrong and how to put it right

Abstract The first part of this article outlines some of the reasons why the exercise of powers can be invalid, with a focus on the failure to comply with formal requirements. The second part considers possible remedies, including the implied exercise of powers doctrine and the defective exercise of powers doctrine, as well as those available to the court where there has been a defective change of trustees. It argues that there will often be an available remedy that enables the invalid exercise of dispositive powers to be retrospectively validated even where the court does not have that jurisdiction.