Author ORCID Identifier
0000-0003-2874-6122
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2025
Abstract
This Article outlines the current state of the law regarding donor standing, which illustrates two realities. First, there is an increas-ing lack of coherence in the law, which has negative consequences, including that the same charitable gift may now be subject to different donor-standing rules depending on completely arbitrary factors. Sec-ond, the trend is in favor of granting donors and certain others standing, although this trend is occurring in a haphazard way. This Article also discusses the various factors that led the law of donor standing down this path. Among other things, there has been a gradual normalization of the concept of donor standing since the turn of the century. In addition, there are various factors that support donor standing, which courts have increasingly recognized, including the well-known deficiencies in attor-ney general oversight, the reality that charities sometimes behave badly, and the fact that in states that allow donor standing, whether by statute or judicial decision, there has not been a flood of vexatious lawsuits filed against charities. This Article briefly concludes by explaining that the law governing charitable gifts has been fragmented in many ways, and it recommends that such law be reunified through the development of a new uniform act that would subject all charitable gifts to the same set of rules—including a uniform donor-standing rule.
Recommended Citation
Nancy A. McLaughlin, Donor Standing to Enforce Charitable Gifts in the 21st Century, 60 Real Prop. Tr. & Est. L.J. 207 (2025).