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The Law of Wills, Trusts and Estate Administration
Part of the common law series
Wills
Wills  · Legal history of wills
Joint wills and mutual wills  · Will contract
Codicils  · Holographic will  · Nuncupative will
Parts of a Will
Attestation clause  · Residuary clause
Incorporation by reference
Contesting a Will
Testamentary capacity  · Undue influence
Insane delusion  · Fraud
Problems of property disposition
Lapse and anti-lapse
Ademption  · Abatement
Acts of independent significance
Elective share  · Pretermitted heir
Trusts
Generic Terms:
Express trust  · Constructive trust
Resulting trust
Common Types of Trust:
Bare trust  · Discretionary trust
Accumulation and Maintenance trust
Interest in Possession trust
Charitable trust  · Purpose trust
Incentive trust
Other Specific Types of Trust:
Protective trust  · Spendthrift trust
Life insurance trust  · Remainder trust
Life interest trust  · Reversionary interest trust
Honorary trust  · Asset-protection trust
Special needs trust: (general)/(U.S.)
Doctrines governing trusts
Pour-over will  · Cy-près doctrine
Estate Administration
Intestacy  · Testator  · Probate
Power of appointment
Simultaneous death  · Slayer rule
Disclaimer of interest
Other related topics
Living Wills (advance directives)
Totten trust
Other areas of the Common Law
Contract law  · Tort law  · Property law
Criminal law  · Evidence

A charitable trust is a trust established for charitable purposes, and is a more specific term than "charitable organisation".

Registered Charities in the United Kingdom may be constituted using various forms of document: those with a "Trust Deed" are Charitable Trusts. (Those with "Memorandum and Articles of Association" are Charitable Companies or and those with a Constitution are based on unincorporated associations.)

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (October 2007)

In general the same rules of trust law apply to charitable and non-charitable trusts. However some special rules apply only to charitable trusts. Details will vary between different jurisdictions. However at common law the most important of these special rules for charities, which continue to apply in most trust law jurisdictions, are as follows:

1. charitable trusts are not subject to the rule against inalienability (which applies to pure purpose trusts);
2. charitable trusts are substantially exempt from the rule against perpetuities, which (in short) would otherwise require a trust to come to an end after a certain period. Charitable trusts may continue indefinitely;
3. if the settlor manifested a general charitable intention, uncertainty of objects will not defeat this intention, since the moneys will be applied cy-près doctrine;
4. if the purposes of the trust subsequently fail, the moneys will be applied cy-près doctrine; and
5. charitable trustees act (by default) by majority rather than unanimity.

Charitable Trusts may also qualify for tax advantages; under changes in the law of 2007, certain unregistered charitable organisations qualify for tax advantages also.

If the trust has qualified under laws such as Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c), donations to the trust may be deductible to an individual taxpayer or corporate donor.

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