• Can a provision in a decedent’s will leaving the bulk of his estate to a church “solely for the building of a new church” be honored if the church has no plans to build a new facility? That was the issue before the Iowa Supreme Court in an important case. An elderly man drafted a will in 1971 that left most of his estate “in trust” to his sisters, and upon the death of the surviving sister, to a local Congregational church with the stipulation that the funds be used “solely for the building of a new church.” The man died in 1981, and his surviving sister died in 1988. Since the Congregational church had no plans to build a new sanctuary, it asked a local court to interpret the will to permit the church to use the trust fund not only for construction of a new facility but also “for the remodeling, improvement, or expansion of the existing church facilities” and for the purchase of real estate that may be needed for future church construction. The church also asked the court for permission to use income from the trust fund for any purposes that the church board wanted. The state attorney general, pursuant to state law, reviewed the church’s petition and asked the court to grant the church’s requests. However, a number of heirs opposed the church’s position, and insisted that the decedent’s will was clear, and that the church was attempting to use the trust funds “for purposes other than building a new church.” They asked the court to distribute the trust fund to the decedent’s lawful heirs. The local court agreed with the church on the ground that “gifts to charitable uses and purposes are highly favored in law and will be most liberally construed to make effectual the intended purpose of the donor.” The trial court’s ruling was appealed by the heirs, and the state supreme court agreed with the trial court and ruled in favor of the church. The supreme court began its opinion by observing that “it is contrary to the public policy of this state to indulge in strained construction of the provisions of a will in order to seek out and discover a basis for avoiding the primary purpose of the [decedent] to bestow a charitable trust.” The court emphasized that the “cy pres” doctrine clearly required it to rule in favor of the church. The “cy pres” doctrine (which has been adopted by most states) provides that “if property is given in trust to be applied to a particular charitable purpose, and it is or becomes impossible or impracticable or illegal to carry out the particular purpose, and if the [decedent] manifested a more general intention to devote the property to charitable purposes, the trust will not fail but the court will direct the application of the property to some charitable purpose which falls within the general charitable intention of the [decedent].” Applying the cy pres rule, the court concluded: “The will gave the property in trust for a particular charitable purpose, the building of a new church. The evidence clearly indicated that it was impractical to carry out this particular purpose. Furthermore, the [decedent] did not provide that the trust should terminate if the purpose failed. A trust is not forfeited when it becomes impossible to carry out its specific purpose, and there is no forfeiture or reversion clause.” The court concluded that the trial court’s decision to permit the church to use the trust fund for the remodeling, improvement, or expansion of the existing church facilities “falls within the [decedent’s] general charitable intention.” Accordingly, the trial court’s decision represented a proper application of the cy pres rule. Churches leaders should be aware of the cy pres rule, for it often has resulted in gifts to churches being upheld despite the contention of heirs that the precise purpose of the gift is not possible. Matter of Trust of Rothrock, 452 N.W.2d 403 (Iowa 1990).

© Copyright 1990, 1998 by Church Law & Tax Report. All rights reserved. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is provided with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Church Law & Tax Report, PO Box 1098, Matthews, NC 28106. Reference Code: m80 m35 c0690