Drafting Charitable Bequests

CarrieMatesevac Collins has published her article, Drafting a Charitable Bequest:An Insider’s View, in the July/August 2007 issue of Probate & Property.

Her suggestions for gift constructions are

• Plan for contingencies
• Consider Using the Least Restrictive Language Possible
• Avoid the Appearance of Self-Dealing

Here is the conclusion:

Although most estate planners arecertainly capable of drafting a charitable bequest without any specialtraining, these simple techniques make the interpretation and execution of a client’swishes much easier. By asking both the client and the charity to which theclient’s largesse is being directed certain simple questions, the estateplanner can avoid many problems that development officers encounter whenconfronted with a new estate gift.