Most trusts are set up for families – by parents or grandparents for the benefit of children, grandchildren and future generations. They are set up for private purposes and there usually isn’t an intention to benefit charities – or at least not as a primary focus.
But charities are still relevant to these families. What happens for example if all the members of the family die? Hopefully of course this never happens – but sadly it does happen from time to time. In such cases, where all the beneficiaries have died, the money would normally go to the Czech state.
We have so far never met a client who would like this to happen! For this reason, a well-drafted trust will always include a charity or charities as ‘beneficiaries of last resort’. This means that, if the unthinkable happens, your money will at least end up going to a good cause.
Sadly, and rather surprisingly, this outcome has already happened for one of our clients. The good news is that UNICEF is now 367,300 better off, with another charity, Nadace Partnerstvi getting a similar amount.
You can read what UNICEF wrote about this here.
