What does Cy-près mean?

Cy-près

Meaning as near as possible. From the old French, literally "near to".

In estate planning, the cy-près doctrine allows the wishes of a charity donor to be carried out even if the original purpose of their charitable gift has failed. For the legal doctrine to apply, the new purpose should be as close as possible to the original purpose.

The Charity Commission has a statutory power to apply the cy-près doctrine to charities whose existing trusts can no longer be carried out. This could be because the original purpose no longer exists, has become illegal or because there are no remaining trustees.

The cy-près doctrine applies to lifetime gifts and gifts by Will. A cy-près power is often expressly included in a gift by Will so that if the original charity no longer exists by the time the testator dies, the power can be used to make the gift to another charity whose purposes are as close as possible to those of the original charity.

Here’s an example:

Felicity left a gift of £5,000 to the donkey sanctuary she had supported all her adult life. Her Will stated:

5.1 I give £5,000 to Moorlands Donkey Sanctuary, registered under charity number xxx (‘the charity’).

5.2 The receipt of a person who is or appears to be a proper officer of the charity shall be a full discharge to my Trustees.

5.3 If, for whatever reason, the charity has ceased to exist or is otherwise unidentifiable, this gift shall take effect as a gift to my Trustees, who shall pay it to the charity which they, in their sole discretion, consider most nearly fulfils the objects I intend to benefit.

If the donkey sanctuary has closed or amalgamated with another charity, Felicity’s trustees can find another charity and give them the £5,000. They might choose another donkey sanctuary or an overseas animal charity with a similar ethos.

If you want to make a charitable gift in your Will, you will need to include the charity’s name, address and registration. You’ll find this information on the Charity Commission’s website.

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Please note that information provided on the Carisma Wills website:

• Does not provide a complete or authoritative statement of the law;

• Does not constitute legal advice by Carisma Wills;

• Does not form part of any other advice, whether paid or free.