Australian charity sets up appeal for house fire family

According to a report from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, an Australian charity has received up to $20,000 for a family who lost two children in a house fire yesterday.  Will Australian authorities bend to sentiment to define this fund as legally charitable, even though the fund’s beneficiaries are too definite and few to qualify as a charitable class? See Jack Siegel’s and Rob Katz’s  discussion of this recurring issue in other contexts.  Katz argues (at pp. 274-275) that in such cases, donated funds should be deposited in a private trust for the family’s benefit.

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