Re Endacott


Re Endacott EWCA Civ 5 is an English trusts law case, concerning the policy of the "beneficiary principle". It held that outside of trusts for animals, graves and saying private masses no trusts can be made for purposes that are non-charitable.

Facts

Mr Albert Endacott wrote in his will that he would give his son some houses and a factory, and then all the rest to the North Tawton Devon Parish Council ‘for the purpose of providing some useful memorial to myself’ unless his wife was still alive, in which case the interest should be paid to her.

Judgment

held that the trust was invalid, because it would be a purpose trust going beyond the fixed list that had been previously exempt.

Significance

Re Endacott put an end to non-charitable purpose trusts developing in English law, and stated that only the four previously acknowledge categories held good. Hayton and Mitchell question whether even those categories are genuinely non-charitable purpose trusts. As they see it,