## Facts

- Kenneth Mayer owned a home in Key Largo with his mother, Anita Mayer, as joint tenants with right of survivorship.
- Anita lived in the Key Largo home; Kenneth lived in his own home in Fort Lauderdale.
- When Anita became ill, she decided to sell the Key Largo home and buy a residence closer to Kenneth.
- To make the sale easier, Kenneth executed a quitclaim deed transferring his interest in the Key Largo property to Anita.
- No consideration was paid for the quitclaim deed; the transfer was made to carry out the planned sale and replacement purchase.
- After receiving sole legal title, and without telling Kenneth, Anita executed a will that devised one-half of the Key Largo home to the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society (WTBTS).
- Anita died before any sale occurred, leaving record title to the Key Largo home in her name.
- After her death, Kenneth sued Dominic Cianciolo, the personal representative of Anita’s estate, seeking to set aside the quitclaim deed and to impose a constructive trust on the property (or its proceeds) in his favor.
- The trial court denied relief, reasoning that Kenneth had not proven fraud or abuse of a confidential relationship.
- Kenneth appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether a constructive trust may be imposed when a grantor conveys real property without consideration to a close family member for a limited purpose, and the grantee (or the grantee’s estate) later treats the property inconsistently with that purpose.
2. Whether proof of actual fraud or “evil design” is required to impose a constructive trust when the transfer arose from a confidential relationship and there is a breach of confidence.

## Decision

- The District Court of Appeal reversed the trial court.
- The court held that Kenneth was entitled to equitable relief because the quitclaim deed, given without consideration in a confidential family setting and for a specific purpose, created a trust-type obligation.
- The court ruled that a constructive trust can arise from a confidential relationship, a transaction induced by that relationship, and a breach of confidence, even without proof of actual fraud.
- The case was remanded with directions consistent with recognizing and enforcing a constructive trust in Kenneth’s favor, rather than allowing the will’s devise to control the beneficial ownership.

## Legal Principles

- A constructive trust is an equitable remedy used to prevent unjust enrichment when property is held in violation of duties arising from a confidential relationship and the confidence placed in the holder is breached.
- Proof of fraud or “evil design” is not a required predicate to a constructive trust where there is (1) a confidential relationship, (2) a transfer induced by that relationship, and (3) a breach of the confidence reposed.
- “Confidential relations” are not limited to formal fiduciary categories; they may exist as a matter of fact in moral, social, domestic, or personal relationships where trust and reliance are present.
- When property is conveyed without consideration to another to carry out a specific, agreed purpose (such as promptly consummating a sale and handling the proceeds), equity may treat the transferee as holding bare legal title while the transferor retains the beneficial interest, consistent with principles applied in cases such as Craft v. Craft.
- A transferee (and later the transferee’s estate) cannot defeat the limited purpose of a no-consideration transfer made in reliance on a confidential relationship by asserting full beneficial ownership contrary to the understanding that induced the conveyance.

## Conclusion

Mayer v. Cianciolo held that Kenneth Mayer’s gratuitous quitclaim deed to his mother, made to facilitate a contemplated sale and relocation, gave Anita only legal title for that limited purpose, and her later will provision devising part of the property to WTBTS could not defeat Kenneth’s beneficial interest. Because a confidential relationship and breach of confidence can support a constructive trust without proof of actual fraud, the appellate court reversed the denial of relief and directed enforcement of a constructive trust in Kenneth’s favor.


Mayer v. Cianciolo, 463 So. 2d 1219 (1985)