## Facts

- William Wilson Corcoran executed an 1869 deed of trust creating a charitable institution in Washington, D.C., centered on a public art gallery/museum and art education.
- The Corcoran operated for decades as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and the Corcoran College of Art + Design under trustee governance, holding a significant art collection and operating educational programs.
- In the years leading up to the proceeding, the Corcoran experienced sustained financial distress, including operating deficits and large capital needs associated with its historic facility.
- The trustees concluded that continuing to run both the museum and the school as a stand-alone institution was no longer workable without exhausting resources and risking measures that would harm the collection and operations.
- A central concern was that pressure to cover ongoing costs could lead to sales from the art collection, with potential consequences for museum standing and the institution’s ability to carry out its charitable purposes.
- The trustees considered and pursued alternatives (including fundraising and operational changes) but determined that no feasible plan would stabilize the institution while keeping it independent in its existing form.
- The trustees proposed a court-approved restructuring intended to keep the core charitable objectives in Washington, D.C.: transfer of stewardship of most of the collection to the National Gallery of Art, and transfer of the educational program and related operations to George Washington University.
- The District of Columbia was named in its public-interest role in charitable trust matters. Other stakeholders (including individuals connected to the school and donors) opposed the plan and argued for options that would keep the Corcoran independent.

## Issues

1. Whether, in light of the Corcoran’s financial condition and operational constraints, carrying out the deed of trust through continued independent operation had become impracticable.
2. If impracticable, whether the trustees’ proposed restructuring was sufficiently close to the settlor’s charitable intent to warrant relief under cy pres.

## Decision

- The court entered an order granting cy pres relief.
- The court authorized implementation of the trustees’ proposed plan, including the agreements that transferred collection stewardship to the National Gallery of Art and continued the educational mission through George Washington University.
- The court found that the trustees established impracticability of continuing the institution under the original operational arrangement.
- The court determined that the approved plan preserved the trust’s central charitable aims—public access to fine art in Washington, D.C., and continued art education—more effectively than the alternatives presented.

## Legal Principles

- Cy pres permits a court to modify a charitable trust when compliance with specific directions becomes impossible or impracticable, while keeping the charitable purpose intact.
- The analysis focuses on the settlor’s charitable objectives, not on preserving a particular governance structure, name, or institutional form if that form can no longer be sustained.
- “Impracticable” may be shown by severe, documented financial and operational conditions demonstrating that continued compliance would likely exhaust resources or materially damage the charitable work.
- When granting cy pres, the court approves a substitute plan that is as close as reasonably possible to the settlor’s intent in the current circumstances.
- Competing proposals may be rejected where they rely on uncertain funding, create substantial operational risk, or increase the likelihood of asset liquidation inconsistent with continuing charitable use.

## Conclusion

In its Feb. 19, 2014 order, the D.C. Superior Court granted cy pres relief to the Corcoran trustees, concluding that continued independent operation under the original trust arrangement had become impracticable and approving a restructuring that maintained public access to the collection in Washington, D.C. through the National Gallery of Art while continuing the art-education mission through George Washington University.


Trs. of the Corcoran Gallery of Art v. District of Columbia, No. 2014 CA 000041 B (D.C. Super. Ct. Feb. 19, 2014) (order granting cy pres)