Cy pres doctrine
Sec. 27. (a) If property is given to a trust for a benevolent public
purpose and the property is to be applied to a particular charitable
purpose, and it is or becomes impossible, impracticable, wasteful, or
illegal to carry out the particular purpose, and if the settlor
manifested a more general intention to devote the property to
charitable purposes, the trust need not fail, but the court may direct
the application of the property to some charitable purpose which falls
within the general charitable intention of the settlor.
(b) The terms of a charitable trust that would result in the
distribution of the trust property to a noncharitable beneficiary
prevails over the power of the court under subsection (a) to apply the
cy pres doctrine to modify or terminate the trust only if, when the
provision takes effect:
(1) the trust property is to revert to the settlor and the settlor is
still alive; or
(2) less than twenty-one (21) years have elapsed since the trust
was created.
(c) A living heir of the settlor or a living beneficiary named in the
original trust agreement may present evidence to the court of:
(1) the heir's or beneficiary's opinion of the settlor's intent; and
(2) the heir's or beneficiary's wishes;
regarding the property given in trust.
(Formerly: Acts 1971, P.L.416, SEC.4.) As amended by P.L.41-2000,
SEC.3; P.L.238-2005, SEC.37.
Last modified: May 27, 2006