Charities Act, 1961

• Jurisdiction: Ireland

Number 17 of 1961.
CHARITIES ACT, 1961.
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
PART I.
Preliminary And General.
Section 1. Short title and commencement. 2. Interpretation. 3. Expenses. 4. Repeals.
PART II.
The Commissioners Of Charitable Donations And Bequests For Ireland And Their Jurisdiction.
Chapter I.
The Board.
5. Continuance of Board. 6. Power to hold land. 7. Constitution. 8. Membership. 9. Procedure. 10. Officers and servants. 11. Seal. 12. Minutes of proceedings. 13. Membership of Board not to disqualify Judge from hearing charity cases. 14. Audit of Accounts. 15. Report. 16. Restriction on payment by Board of solicitor's costs. 17. Indemnity of Board and persons acting under their direction. 18. Service of notices on Board. 19. Costs of Board to be borne by charity.
Chapter II.
Jurisdiction and powers of the Board.
20. Power to grant exemption from obligation to publish advertisements of charitable devises and bequests. 21. Power to advise charity trustees as to administration of trusts. 22. Compromise of claims by or against a charity. 23. Power to sue for recovery of charitable gifts improperly withheld, concealed, or misapplied. 24. Recovery of charitable gifts. 25. Power of Board to authorise or direct institution of legal proceedings in a charity matter. 26. Power of Board to certify certain charity cases to the Attorney General. 27. Power of Board to apply for conduct of administration suits and suits for carrying out trusts of wills in case of delay. 28. Power of Board to apply for transfer of unapplied charity fund in Court. 29. Power of Board to frame schemes applying property cy-près. 30. Alteration of schemes under Educational Endowments (Ireland) Act, 1885. 31. Acceptance by Board of gift for charitable purposes. 32. Investment of charity fund. 33. Leave to invest charity fund held subject to prior limited interest. 34. Power of Board to authorise or make sale, exchange or surrender lease of charity land. 35. Power of Board to authorise sale of periodical payment belonging to a charity and payable out of land. 36. Power of Board to authorise purchase of periodical payment payable out of charity land. 37. Power of Board or trustees of charity, with authority of Board, to grant building, etc., leases, do repairs, etc., and raise money for those purposes. 38. Investment of proceeds of sale, etc., in name of Board. 39. Power of Board or trustees of charity to purchase sites for buildings from owners under disability according to Lands Clauses Consolidation Act, 1845. 40. Validity of sales, etc., authorised by Board. 41. Power of Board to give effectual receipt of payments for charitable purposes where no person available or competent to do so. 42. Power of Board to require copies of public documents relating to charities and to examine and search records. 43. Power of Board to appoint new trustees of charity. 44. Taxation of solicitor's costs.
PART III.
Miscellaneous Provisions in relation to Charities.
45. Gifts for the advancement of religion. 46. Schemes to establish common investment funds. 47. Occasions for applying property cy-près. 48. Application cy-près of gifts of donors unknown or disclaiming. 49. Construction of gifts for mixed purposes. 50. Gifts for graves and memorials. 51. Power to apply to High Court for directions. 52. Duty of executors to publish, unless exempted under section 20 advertisements of charitable devises and bequests. 53. Notice of legal proceedings to be given to Board. 54. Deeds, etc., may be deposited by trustees of charity in repository provided by Board. 55. Power of majority of two-thirds of trustees to deal with charity property. 56. Provision in relation to bodies corporate acting as sole trustees in certain cases. 57. Resignation of member of governing body of charitable foundation and filling of vacancy. 58. Probate Officer to make annual return to Board of charitable devises and bequests. 59. Power to meet a particular deficit.
SCHEDULE.
Repeals.
Acts Referred to Interpretation Act, 1937 1937, No. 38 Charitable Donations and Bequests Act (Ireland), 1871 1871, c. 102 Charitable Donations and Bequests (Amendment) Act, 1955 1955, No. 18 General Prisons (Ireland) Act, 1877 1877, c. 49 Alteration of schemes under Educational Endowments (Ireland) Act, 1885 1885, c. 18 provisions of the Lands Clauses Consolidation Act, 1845 1845, c. 18
Number 17 of 1961.
CHARITIES ACT, 1961.
AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW RELATING TO CHARITIES. [28th June, 1961.]
BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:—
PART I. Preliminary and General.
	Short title and commencement.	1.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Charities Act, 1961.
	(2) This Act shall come into operation on the 1st day of July, 1961.
	Interpretation.	2.—In this Act—
	“the Board” means the Commissioners of Charitable Donations and Bequests for Ireland;
	“charitable gift” means a gift for charitable purposes;
	“fund” includes any interest, present or future, in any stock, shares, annuities or other securities or choses in action, and also includes money;
	“gift” means a donation, devise or bequest;
	“the Secretary” means the Secretary of the Board;
	references to the trustee of a charity shall be construed as including references to a person acting in the administration or management of a charity;
	“will” includes codicil.
	Expenses.	3.—All expenses incurred by the Board in the administration of this Act and not otherwise provided for shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.
	Repeals.	4.—(1) The enactments mentioned in the Schedule are hereby repealed to the extent specified in the third column.
	(2) Every scheme or order made, notice, decision, opinion or advice given or thing done by the Board under a repealed enactment shall remain valid notwithstanding such repeal as if made, given or done under this Act.
	(3) Subsection (2) is without prejudice to section 21 of the Interpretation Act, 1937.
PART II. The Commissioners of Charitable Donations and Bequests for Ireland and their Jurisdiction.
Chapter I. The Board.
	Continuance of Board.	5.—The Commissioners of Charitable Donations and Bequests for Ireland (in this Act referred to as the Board) shall continue in being, notwithstanding the repeals effected by this Act, as a body corporate with perpetual succession and a common seal and may in their corporate name sue and be sued.
	Power to hold land.	6.—The Board shall in their corporate name have and be deemed always to have had power to acquire, hold and dispose of land.
	Constitution.	7.—The Board shall consist of not more than eleven members.
	Membership.	8.—(1) The Government shall appoint persons to be members of the Board from time to time as occasion requires.
	(2) Each member of the Board shall hold office until his death, resignation or removal from office.
	(3) The Government may remove from office any member of the Board.
	(4) The appointment or removal of a member of the Board shall be published in Iris Oifigiúil.
	(5) As soon as may be after the commencement of this Act, and thereafter as occasion requires, the Board shall appoint a member of the Board to be the Chairman of the Board and the Chairman shall hold office for such period as the Board determine when appointing him.
	(6) The persons who are members of the Board immediately before the commencement of this Act shall continue in office as if appointed under this section.
	Procedure.	9.—(1) At a meeting of the Board, if the Chairman of the Board is absent, the senior member in order of appointment or such other member as the Board may select shall be chairman.
	(2) A member who continues in office on the commencement of this Act shall take rank according to the date of his original appointment.
	(3) Every question at a meeting of the Board shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members present and voting and, in the case of an equal division of votes, the chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.
	(4) At a meeting of the Board three members shall form a quorum, if due notice of that meeting was given to all the members.
	Officers and servants.	10.—(1) The Minister for Justice, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, shall from time to time as occasion requires appoint a secretary of the Board and may, with the like consent, appoint such other officers and such servants as may be necessary for the purposes of this Act.
	(2) The Secretary and the other officers and servants of the Board shall hold office on such terms and receive such remuneration as the Minister for Finance determines.
	(3) The Secretary and the other officers and servants of the Board holding office immediately before the commencement of this Act shall continue in office as if appointed under this section.
	Seal.	11.—(1) The seal of the Board shall be affixed only by order of the Board and its affixation shall be attested by the signatures of two members of the Board or of a member of the Board and the Secretary.
	(2) The seal of the Board shall be judicially noticed and every document purporting to be sealed with...