Opinion ID: 1059334
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 9

Heading: Doctrine of Cy Pres

Text: The defendants assign error to the chancellor's decision to apply the Virginia law of cy prey rather than Maryland law governing the distribution of assets of a Maryland non-profit corporation. The common law doctrine of cy pres permits a court of equity to administer a charitable trust to conform as closely as possible to the purpose for which the trust was created or, if that purpose cannot be achieved, for some other charitable purpose. [3] See Baliles v. Miller, 231 Va. 48, 56 n. 7, 340 S.E.2d 805, 810 n. 7 (1986); Campbell v. Board of Trustees, 220 Va. 516, 524, 260 S.E.2d 204, 209 (1979). In Tauber I, we held that the chancellor properly imposed a constructive trust so that the assets of JMHI can be distributed in accordance with appropriate charitable purposes. We stated that the [chancellor] properly exercised [his] authority to insure that these assets, now held by the defendants as trustees in liquidation, are distributed in accord with the charitable purposes to which they should have been devoted. This power to liquidate the assets and business of a nonstock corporation may be exercised over the property within the court's jurisdiction of a foreign corporation that has ceased to exist. Code § 13.1-909(B). Id. at 456, 499 S.E.2d at 845. Based on this holding in Tauber I, we conclude that the chancellor properly invoked the doctrine of cy pres in providing for the future distribution of JMHI's assets.