Imposition of a Constructive Trust under North Carolina Estate Law-a New View of North Carolina General Statute 31-5.6
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LAW REVIEW
VOLUME 19 APRIL 1983 NUMBER 2
IMPOSITION OF A CONSTRUCTIVE TRUST UNDER
NORTH CAROLINA ESTATE LAW-A NEW VIEW OF
NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL STATUTE 31-5.6
Theodore C. Conrad*
Louis A. Trosch**
Fred W. DeVore III***
And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great
and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, bless me, even me
also, 0 my father. And [the father] said, thy brother came with
subtlety, and hath taken away thy blessing.
Genesis 28:34-35
In the Biblical story of Esau and Jacob, Jacob was able to success-
fully defraud his brother, Esau, of his rightful inheritance. As the Biblical
story so aptly illustrates, devious legatees and devisees throughout the
ages have used various fraudulent schemes upon testators to defraud in-
nocent beneficiaries out of inheritances. Today, Jacob's fraudulent mis-
representations usually could be rectified in the equity courts by im-
pressing a constructive trust against Jacob. In North Carolina, however,
Jacob's fraud may have prevailed over his innocent brother, Esau, be-
cause North Carolina is the only jurisdiction in the United States that
prevents the imposition of a constructive trust against a beneficiary under
a will who obtains the benefit under the will by fraudulent means.
A constructive trust is an equitable remedy designed to prevent un-
J.D., Harvard University 1933; B.A., DePauw University 1925; Certified Public Ac-
countant 1940.
** J.D., West Virginia University 1965; M.A., George Washington University 1966;
B.A., Bethany College 1961; Associate Professor of Business Administration-University of
North Carolina at Charlottte.
*** J.D., Wake Forest University 1982; M.A. University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill 1977; B.A. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 1975; Lecturer in Business Law-
University of North Carolina at Charlotte.](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/wflr19&div=19&collection=journals&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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Imposition of a Constructive Trust under North Carolina Estate Law-a New View of North Carolina General Statute 31-5.6
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