A HIGH Court judge has ruled that a property investment club, which enticed investors with hopes of building a portfolio worth up to £1 million in 12 months, was wrongly wound up by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

Portfolios of Distinction and Turningpoint Seminars, a related company, were forced out of business by the DTI which implied the companies were a danger to the public.

Portfolios of Distinction aimed to assist its members to build a property portfolio of up to £1 million for a £50,000 annual fee. Money from investors was clubbed together to buy new properties from developers off-plan, before the buildings were complete, enabling them to buy at a discount.

Turningpoint Seminars, a firm linked to Portfolios of Distinction, specialised in seminars on property investment.

But Deputy Judge Mr John Jarvis QC said there were inadequate grounds to conclude the companies had misled investors or created a “deliberate mis-statement of omission” to require the court to wind them up on a compulsory basis.

The ruling is expected to have profound implications for the hundreds of property investment clubs that have sprung up around the UK.

The DTI had alleged that Portfolios of Distinction was carrying out its business in a way that was “inherently objectionable” by inducing the public to take part on the basis of a representation that the client would have a £1 million portfolio within 12 months.

The company was founded by Wendy Dowling with Alan Churchill, her ex-husband.

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