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Charitable status

Charitable status FORTHCOMING CHANGE: The Charities Act 2022 (CA 2022) received Royal Assent on 24 February 2022 and the plan, as set out in Charities Act 2022: implementation plan is for its provisions to come into force in three defined groups over three stages, on 31 October 2022, on 14 June 2023 and in “early 2024”. For a summary of the provisions in CA 2022 which have been implemented so far, see: Charities Act 2022: information about the changes being introduced. CA 2022 implements the majority of the recommendations from the 2017 Law Commission report, ‘Technical Issues in Charity Law’. For a summary (as at 9 April 2021) of the recommendations that have been accepted, see News Analysis: Government response to Law Commission report ‘Technical Issues in Charity Law’. Of particular relevance to this Practice Note are the changes relating to the ability to change the objects of a charity. The position set out below in relation to...

Charity trustees—a brief guide

Charity trustees—a brief guide FORTHCOMING CHANGE: The Charities Act 2022 (CA 2022) received Royal Assent on 24 February 2022 and the plan, as set out in Charities Act 2022: implementation plan is for its provisions to come into force in three defined groups over three stages, on 31 October 2022, on 14 June 2023 and in ‘early 2024’. For a summary of the provisions in CA 2022 which have been implemented so far, see: Charities Act 2022: information about the changes being introduced. CA 2022 implements the majority of the recommendations from the 2017 Law Commission report, ‘Technical Issues in Charity Law’. For a summary (as at 9 April 2021) of the recommendations that have been accepted, see News Analysis: Government response to Law Commission report ‘Technical Issues in Charity Law’. Trustees' functions The starting point is that the trustees, or ‘charity trustees’ as defined in section 177 of the Charities Act 2011 (CA 2011, s 177), are the persons in...

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Where a gift has been made to the nuns of a named religious institution and the religious institution no longer exists but a nun from the religious institution still survives, does the gift fail or does the surviving nun receive the gift?

Where a gift has been made to the nuns of a named religious institution and the religious institution no longer exists but a nun from the religious institution still survives, does the gift fail or does the surviving nun receive the gift? Although it will depend on the precise wording of the gift, it could be construed as a charitable gift for the advancement of religion. If so, please refer to Q&As: Can a legacy made in a Will to a charity which no longer exists go to a different charity which has resumed their work? If so, do I need to apply to the Charity Commission and apply the cy-près doctrine to do this? and How should a gift in a Will to a charity that no longer exists be administered? which discuss how the cy-près doctrine may apply to a gift to a charity which no longer exists. Note that for the cy-près doctrine to apply, the testator must have had a general charitable intention in making the...

Does the definition of 'Charity' in Northern Ireland vary from the definition in England & Wales, eg in section 1 of the Charities Act 2011?

Does the definition of 'Charity' in Northern Ireland vary from the definition in England & Wales, eg in section 1 of the Charities Act 2011? In England and Wales, the definition of ‘Charity’ is governed by section 1 of the Charities Act 2011 (CA 2011). It provides that a charity means an institution which is established for charitable purposes only and is subject to the control of the High Court in the exercise of its jurisdiction in respect to charities. In other words, the institution must be established for purposes which are exclusively charitable and is subject to the control of the Chancery Division of the High Court of England and Wales (eg in relation to cy-pres schemes). Unless the context otherwise admits, an institution for these purposes means an institution whether incorporated or not, and includes a trust or undertaking (CA 2011, s 9(3)(4)). In practice charities are structured as either trusts, unincorporated organisations, unincorporated associations or charitable companies. By CA 2011, s 2, charitable purposes means purposes...

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Court of appeal stops non-justiciable proceedings (Khaira & others v Shergill & others)

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal against a decision setting aside an application to permanently stay or strike out a claim on the grounds that it was non-justiciable. The court found that subjective issues of religious doctrine and practice fell outside its secular remit and that 'this court should put a halt to this case right now' so as to avoid ‘further waste of time and money in the fruitless pursuit of a judicial determination that cannot be made’. In doing so, the court considered the principles of non-justiciability set out in Buttes Gas and Oil v Hammer and advised the parties to engage in some form of alternative dispute resolution procedure.