The Uniting Church in Australia Property Trust (Q) v Attorney-General for the State of Queensland

The Uniting Church in Australia Property Trust (Q) sought approval for a cy-près application of a gift of land intended to be used as a youth camp. The gift was devised in the last will of William James Beattie, dated 8 February 1980, and the property in question is located on Calico Creek, near Gympie. The trust was subject to conditions, including that an area of pine trees on the property be retained. The Uniting Church contended that the use of the property as specified in the will is impractical, and thus, the gift should be applied cy-près. The court had to decide whether there was a charitable intent expressed by the testator and whether there was a charitable purpose in accordance with the established heads of charity.

The central legal issues before the court were whether the trust disclosed a general charitable intention and whether the original purposes of the trust could not be carried out, or could not be carried out according to the directions given and to the spirit of the trust, thus warranting a cy-près application. The court had to examine the testator's intent and determine if the gift could be applied cy-près under the provisions of the Trusts Act 1973 (Qld).

The court found that the testator’s will indeed expressed a general charitable intention. The bequest was for a purpose that aligns with the established heads of charity, specifically youth welfare. The court also determined that the original purposes of the trust could not be carried out in the manner intended by the testator. The impracticality of retaining the pine trees and using the property as a youth camp led the court to conclude that the gift should be applied cy-près. The proposed scheme, which involved selling the property and directing the funds towards youth work by the Uniting Church and the upgrade of facilities for youth, was deemed acceptable. The court ordered the removal of the charge on the property, the application of the property cy-près in accordance with the scheme, and that the applicant’s costs be paid out of the proceeds of the trust on an indemnity basis.