The beneficiary prcnicple iand uncniorporiated iassoiciaton
The reiason for the excstenie of the rule:
• Part of the reason objects of a trust are required to be certain is so that there will be
somebody on whose behalf the court can enforce a trust.
- Morice v Bishop of Durham:
“Every other (non-charitable) trust must have a defnite object. There must be somebody in
whose favour the court can decree performance” per William Grant MR
• This is known as the benefciary principle.
Exieptons to the beneficiary prcnicple:
Trusts of cmperfeit oblcgiaton:
• Charitable trusts – purpose trust e.g. cancer research… purpose for research
(produces public beneft)
• Tombs & Monuments: trusts for the erecton and maintenance of tombs and
monuments are valid provided they are within the perpetuity period: Musset v
Bingle; Re Hooper [1932] 1 Ch.38.
• Trusts for the maintenance of partcular animals (must also be within the perpetuity
period): Re Dean.
Note that trusts for animals generally might come within charitable trusts
• Trust for the saying of private masses: give money to your pastor, purpose of saying
prays for the redempton of my soul.. Bourne v. Keane [1919] AC 815; Re Le Cren
Clarke [1996] 1 All ER 715.
• If the masses are said in public, it might become a charitable trust for the promoton
of religion: Re Hetherington [1989] 2 All ER 129.
• Trusts for the promoton of fox-huntng (fox-huntng with hounds is now illegal in
England and Wales): Re Thompson
• These categories should be strictly applied and not extended: Re Astor
Purposes ias motie for the trust:
• A trust for purposes may nevertheless be saved by construing it as one for the
beneft of a person in a partcular way, i.e., a gif. In other words the purpose is
regarded as a motve for the gif:
• Re Osoba
• Re Abbott Fund
Eroscon of the prcnicple?
• A gif which is to beneft specifed persons by the use of property in a partcular way
may be construed as a trust for persons and not for purposes:
• Re Denley:
- land was given to trustees for the purpose of providing a sports ground “primarily for
the beneft of the employees of (a certain) company and secondarily for the beneft
of such other persons as the trustees shall allow to use the same”. Gof held that it
was a trust for persons which satsfed the benefciary principle, and he distnguished
it from pure abstract purpose trust.
The reiason for the excstenie of the rule:
• Part of the reason objects of a trust are required to be certain is so that there will be
somebody on whose behalf the court can enforce a trust.
- Morice v Bishop of Durham:
“Every other (non-charitable) trust must have a defnite object. There must be somebody in
whose favour the court can decree performance” per William Grant MR
• This is known as the benefciary principle.
Exieptons to the beneficiary prcnicple:
Trusts of cmperfeit oblcgiaton:
• Charitable trusts – purpose trust e.g. cancer research… purpose for research
(produces public beneft)
• Tombs & Monuments: trusts for the erecton and maintenance of tombs and
monuments are valid provided they are within the perpetuity period: Musset v
Bingle; Re Hooper [1932] 1 Ch.38.
• Trusts for the maintenance of partcular animals (must also be within the perpetuity
period): Re Dean.
Note that trusts for animals generally might come within charitable trusts
• Trust for the saying of private masses: give money to your pastor, purpose of saying
prays for the redempton of my soul.. Bourne v. Keane [1919] AC 815; Re Le Cren
Clarke [1996] 1 All ER 715.
• If the masses are said in public, it might become a charitable trust for the promoton
of religion: Re Hetherington [1989] 2 All ER 129.
• Trusts for the promoton of fox-huntng (fox-huntng with hounds is now illegal in
England and Wales): Re Thompson
• These categories should be strictly applied and not extended: Re Astor
Purposes ias motie for the trust:
• A trust for purposes may nevertheless be saved by construing it as one for the
beneft of a person in a partcular way, i.e., a gif. In other words the purpose is
regarded as a motve for the gif:
• Re Osoba
• Re Abbott Fund
Eroscon of the prcnicple?
• A gif which is to beneft specifed persons by the use of property in a partcular way
may be construed as a trust for persons and not for purposes:
• Re Denley:
- land was given to trustees for the purpose of providing a sports ground “primarily for
the beneft of the employees of (a certain) company and secondarily for the beneft
of such other persons as the trustees shall allow to use the same”. Gof held that it
was a trust for persons which satsfed the benefciary principle, and he distnguished
it from pure abstract purpose trust.
