Protecting Charitable Interests
Are charities in a will easier to challenge when there are more than five entities named? This topic came up at a recent lunch with estate planning and litigation colleagues. One told a cautionary tale of a large estate that was litigated away from a dozen named charities. The charities lacked the will and coordination to uphold the testator’s clear charitable intent.
Serving the Charitable Purpose
I want to float a trial balloon about charitable trusts. A clause stipulating that a trust should be limited to using income for charitable purposes, meaning that capital is untouchable, should be viewed as an administrative clause and not part of the charitable objects. The charitable purposes of the trust may be perpetual, but making the trust “income only” is a historical drafting convention that no longer serves the charitable purposes. “Income only” is a scheme that is a means to an end (i.e. the charitable purpose) that is no longer serving the end.