In one of his many seminal essays on equity, Sir Anthony Mason argues that it is characteristic of the development of equitable do
In one of his many seminal essays on equity, Sir Anthony Mason argues that it is characteristic of the development of equitable doctrine that what start their life in equity as unspecific references to the demands of conscience mature into more determinate rules and principles as they are reflected on, refined and applied by judges. On this view judges, by repeatedly evaluating the facts of particular cases within a certain class in light of the demands of conscience, may over time come to a clearer understanding of those demands that in turn renders them more determinate. Arguably, this trend is discernible in the recent treatment of incomplete gifts in English equity