Ratio Decidendi
A bona fide purchaser for value of the legal estate without notice of a prior equitable interest takes free from that interest. This defence—equity's darling—is a complete answer to equitable claims.
Facts
Trustees lent trust money on mortgage. The mortgagor subsequently mortgaged the property to Rawlins, who had no notice of the trust.
Judgment Summary
James LJ held that Rawlins, as a bona fide purchaser for value without notice, took free of the trust interest.
Key Quotes
"The plea of a purchaser for valuable consideration without notice is an absolute, unqualified, unanswerable defence."
— James LJ
Subsequent Treatment
Good law
Definitive statement of the bona fide purchaser doctrine.