STEP NSW Evening Seminar | Wednesday 21 October 2026
STEP NSW Evening Seminar | Wednesday 21 October 2026
STEP NSW Branch invites you to a seminar with The Honourable Justice James Hmelnitsky, Supreme Court of New South Wales.
Topic: Bedrock or Baggage: s 86A of the Trustee Act 1925 (NSW) and the ‘substratum’ rule
Section 86A of the Trustee Act 1925 (NSW) allows the Court to approve ‘any arrangement to vary or revoke all or any of the trust’. It has previously been suggested that the ambit of the Court’s power under s 86A does not extend to approving arrangements which change the whole ‘substratum’ of the trust. The so-called ‘substratum’ rule arose from several authorities considering powers of amendment, particularly the power under the Variation of Trusts Act 1958 (UK) which is the UK analogue of s 86A.
This seminar considers whether, in light of more recent Australian jurisprudence on trust resettlement, the ‘substratum’ rule should serve as a constraint on the exercise of the power under s 86A.
Event Details
Date: Wednesday 21 October 2026
Time: 17:30 – 18:30 AEDT
Venue: Court 13A, Supreme Court of NSW, 184 Phillip Street, Sydney (in person and online via live-stream)
Cost: STEP Members $75 | Non-Members $120
For further information or assistance, please contact stepnswaustralia@step.org