Modification of Charitable Trusts—The Cy Pres Doctrine Interactions

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zackary was a sports enthusiast. In high school, he played on the school’s baseball team. To promote his interest, Zachary established a trust to specifically support the efforts of his former high school’s baseball team. Due to budget cuts, five years after the trust was established (and two years after Zachary’s death), the school eliminated the baseball team. Another high school on the other side of town still had an active baseball team. The court would:
Choice 1 Apply the cy pres doctrine and shift the trust’s funds for use by the other baseball team.
Choice 2 Allow the trust to terminate and have the funds revert to Zackary’s heirs via a resulting trust.
Choice 3 Apply the cy pres doctrine and shift the trust’s funds for use by another sport at Zackary’s old high school.
Clifford was a resident of Marin County (the most affluent county in the San Francisco Bay Area), CA when he died. The trust he established directed that his assets be used to provide care for the needy in Marin County, in addition to other nonprofit charitable, religious or educational purposes in that county. A windfall was bestowed on the trust, causing its assets to mushroom to $300 million (from $9 million). Other counties petitioned the court to be able to tap into the surplus funds. The court would:
Choice 1 Apply the cy pres doctrine and allow other counties’ charitable organizations to share in the trust funds.
Choice 2Deny the petitioners’ request to allow the surplus to be used by other counties’ charitable organizations.
Choice 3 Allow the trust to terminate and revert the assets to Clifford heirs via a resulting trust.

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