Llamas, legacies, and legalities—does a gift in a Will fail if the charity ceases to exist? (British Camelids Ltd v Brooke Hospital for Animals and others)
Private Client analysis: An animal loving conservationist, Candia Midworth, who kept llamas at her farm in Surrey, left her £1.9m estate to be divided equally between several animal charities. By the time of her death on 8 April 2022, a few of the charities had been transferred to their successors or ceased to exist entirely. The claimants, British Camelids Ltd, sought to split the estate 50/50 between themselves and the fourth defendants as the only two remaining charities that existed at the time of Mrs Midworth’s death. Each of the first, second and third defendants maintained that they were the successors of the respective charities identified in the Will and should therefore still benefit from the gifts. The court held that a gift should not necessarily fail on the original named entity ceasing to exist if the broad charitable purpose of the gifts continues. The claimant and all defendants were entitled to an equal share of the residuary estate. Interestingly, the court further concluded that despite the fifth defendant ceasing to exist entirely, their respective share of the estate should be divided among some of the defendants who have broadly similar charitable purposes. Written by Lauren Gale, associate at Gardner Leader LLP.