Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Charity definition

What does Charity mean? In practice, a charity is an organisation established solely for charitable purposes to deliver public benefit, with assets held for those purposes and supervised by the courts and charity regulators. Common forms include a trust, unincorporated association or company limited by guarantee (including CIO/SCIO). Surpluses cannot be distributed to members; funds must be applied to the purposes. Political activity is permitted only as ancillary. Status determines regulatory duties and eligibility for charity tax reliefs. England and Wales: Charities Act 2011, s 1, defines a charity as an institution established for charitable purposes only and subject to High Court control;...

Charity trustee conflicts of interest: duties, unauthorised benefits, Companies Act 2006 issues, case law and Charity Commission investigations (England and Wales)

Published by a LexisNexis Private Client expert

Practice notes

Key principles

The core principles relating to conflicts of interest are:

A conflict of interest is any circumstance where a trustee’s personal interests or loyalties could, or could be perceived to, prevent them from acting solely in the Charity’s best interests
Trustees must avoid any position in which their trustee duties may conflict with personal interests or loyalties, and must not allow private loyalties or interests to override their trustee duties and responsibilities
The Charity Commission’s Guidance places growing emphasis on the management and/or avoidance of conflicts of interest, and the number of Charity Commission investigations in this area has increased noticeably
When a potential conflict arises, it must be managed appropriately-for example, the relevant trustee should withdraw from the decision-making process
Charities should also draft and maintain a conflicts of Interest policy that covers:
- the types of conflict of interest addressed by the policy
- when a trustee may take a benefit from the charity
- the creation of a register of interests
- how trustees notify their interest, eg in writing, prior to decisions...

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Adam Carvalho

Adam Carvalho has more than 15 years' experience as a contentious Private Client lawyer. Most recently, he was a Legal Director in the Contentious Trusts and Probate Team at Myerson, where he worked on complex and high-value contentious trust and probate matters.Adam trained, qualified and worked as a senior associate and partner in a central London firm in the Tier 1 nationally for Contentious Trust and Probate work.Adam has considerable experience of ultra-high value litigation, cross-jurisdictional matters and disputes in non-UK courts. Adam has litigated in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, and advised in relation to complex matters in courts from Bermuda to New Zealand. Adam is known for his constructive, pragmatic advice, his down to earth approach, and his technical knowledge. Adam is a firm believer in focusing on the main issues and providing sound and accessible advice....

Web page updated on 27/05/2026

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