The Court approved by consent a declaration that land held by the Patriarch of the Syrian Orthodox Church was held on a charitable trust for the maintenance and propagation of the Syriac Orthodox Christian faith (not confined to the local parish community), and approved an administrative scheme governing the trust property. The Court confirmed that declaratory relief may be granted by consent where the claim was initially contested and the declaration quells the dispute, particularly where the Attorney-General consents in charitable trust proceedings. The Patriarch was removed as trustee and replaced by a company limited by guarantee, with all parties' costs ordered to be paid from trust property on agreed bases.
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