Question: Case Study Scenario
Arthur Wilson, who was the founder of the Swallow‘s Bank, has recently died. He has provided for his family and wanted to leave some charitable gifts. His will contains the following provisions:
a) I give £50,000 to promote the music of the famous composer Benjamin Britten and to fund research into what links, if any, there are between his music and the great composers of the past.
b) I give £500,000 to my trustees to apply for the relief of ex-employees of Swallow‘s Bank and their families who may have come upon financial hard times.
c) I leave £1m to establish the George Mainwaring Centre for Alternative Medicine, which will provide comfort to patients and ease suffering. Patients should be charged, each according to their means.
d) I leave a further £500,000 to promote the playing of sport (e.g. cricket, football, snooker) amongst the youth of Walmington-on Sea, so that young people can come together, get fit and find a sense of community.
e) I leave £100,000 to promote and encourage kindness to animals.
Advise Arthur‘s executors as to the validity of these provisions as charitable gifts.
Answer: This problem question concerns the validity of charitable gifts. In 1891 Lord Macnaghten innovated charity law by providing a categorisation of the different charitable purposes. Since then, the Charities Act 2006 (hereafter called ‘the Act’) has come into force and expanded the list of charitable purposes recognised at law.
However, for a charity to be valid at law it must do more than simply be for a recognised purpose ; it must also be for the public benefit ; and be exclusively charitable. These are the hallmarks of a charity and each one of the provisions will be examined in turn to determine which, if any, are valid.
Provision A
In the words of Wilberforce J. “The first step is to construe the bequest” . This provision has dual charitable purposes, the promotion of music and the funding of research. These can fall under; the advancement of the “arts, culture, ...(short extract)
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- Subject: Law
- Course: Equity and Trust Law
- Level: Degree
- Year: 2nd/3rd
- Mark: 70%
- Words: 1667
- Date submitted: May 13, 2013
- Date written: February, 2012
- References: Yes
- Document type: Essay*
- Essay ID: 4755
