Date updated: Friday 14th June 2024
What happens when a donor leaves charitable gifts in their Will, but it is not clear which organisations should benefit?
This surprisingly common conundrum has recently been brought into the spotlight by the case of Dryden v Young, in which the identities of several charities set to benefit from a Will were called into question.
Solicitor Elle McDonald examines this intriguing case, highlighting the rulings and what lessons can be learnt by those writing and executing Wills.
Marjorie Robinson Thompson (“the Deceased”) sadly passed away on 9 April 2020. Prior to her death, she executed her Last Will & Testament on 26 May 2016 (“the Will”). The Deceased later executed a codicil dated 20 October 2017. The codicil simply made a gift of a diamond and tanzanite ring to Ms Angela Charlton and confirmed all other clauses contained within the Will remained accurate.
Under Clause 10 of the Will, the residue of the Deceased’s estate was given to 15 organisations, each of which was to receive an equal fifteenth of the residue. However, during the estate administration process, questions started to arise as to the identities of seven of the named charitable beneficiaries of the Will. The latest available estate accounts indicated that the value of a one fifteenth share of the residue amounted to £105,000.
The ambiguous clauses in the Will concerned the following:
Clause in Will | Description of organisation in Will |
10(ii) | Animal Defence Society 52-53 Dean Street London W1V 5HJ |
10(iv) | Animal Health Trust 24 Portland Place London W1N 4HN |
10(vii) | Society for Promotion of Nature Reserves The Manor House Alford Lincolnshire |
10(viii) | The Donkey Sanctuary Springfield Fosters Lane Woodleigh Berkshire |
10(ix) | The Home Rest for Horses Sheep Lane Whitchurch Shropshire |
10(x) | The Heavy Horses Preservation Society Old Rectory Whitchurch Shropshire |
10(xi) | The Society for the Preservation of English Countryside |
Mr William John Dryden, acting in his capacity as administrator, issued a Part 8 claim whereby the Court was asked to determine the true construction of the above gifts in the Will.
The process of construction of a Will involves the determination of the deceased’s intentions in using the words that are set out in the Will. The court is to ascertain the deceased’s intention by reading the Will as a whole in the light of any extrinsic evidence available.
HH Judge Davies-White KC analysed the ambiguous clauses in their judgment, a copy of which can be found here. The relevant paragraphs of the judgment can be found at paragraphs 109 – 196.
It was held that all the gifts were valid and payable, though the majority to charities now operating under different names to those stated in the Will and with the same objects as the original charities.
Clause 13 of the deceased’s Will did throw some doubt on proceedings. It stated that, if any charitable or other body to which a gift was intended to be made “changed its name or amalgamated with or transferred its assets to any other body” and did so “before my death (or after my death but before my trustees have given effect to the gift in question)”, then the relevant gift was to be distributed between the remaining organisations named in the Will.
However, HH Judge Davies-White KC argued that Clause 13 did not apply to any charitable beneficiaries in this case as, in their judgement, “it is clear that the clause only bites on relevant identified changes that occur after the date of execution of the Will” and all the identified changes took place before this.
The key takeaway from this case is how important it is to ensure accurate detailed information – such as the name of the charity, address and registered charity number – is provided when the Will is drafted. This particular case shows how significant costs can be incurred by those responsible for administering the estate if doubts arise as to the correct identifies of the chosen beneficiaries.
In the event that the above information is not readily available, it is recommended that the testator should contact their chosen charity (or charities) to inform them of their decision to leave them a gift in their Will. In the event that uncertainties arise as to the identity of a chosen beneficiary in the future, such correspondence may assist the executors in trying to ascertain this.
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