ABSTRACT
Gifts for charitable purposes have enjoyed special advantages under the law since medieval times, and much of the modern law of charitable trusts is explicable only in terms of the complex historical development of the subject. A trust is not the only method of carrying out a charitable purpose; incorporated and unincorporated associations provide alternative frameworks. Nevertheless, the trust is an established mechanism for pursuing charitable activity. Charitable trusts are subject to the same requirements and have the same characteristics as private trusts. They differ in one primary aspect: a charitable trust exists to benefit a purpose, whereas a private trust exists for the benefit of specified beneficiaries (Morice v Bishop of Durham (1804)).
