Hardt v. Vitae Foundation

302 S.W.3d 133 (2009)

From our private database of 46,500+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Hardt v. Vitae Foundation

Missouri Court of Appeals
302 S.W.3d 133 (2009)

Facts

Selma Hartke’s estate (plaintiff) made two gifts of approximately $4 million to the Vitae Foundation, Inc. (Vitae) (defendant), a charitable corporation. The estate placed terms and conditions on how both gifts were to be used, and Vitae agreed to these terms. Later, the estate’s executors, Edwin and Karl Hardt (plaintiffs), learned that Vitae had not followed the agreed terms and conditions. For instance, Vitae had agreed to use much of the gift money to buy advertising for a particular cause. However, Vitae had not purchased the advertising and was using the money to pay for additional staff instead. The executors sued Vitae on the estate’s behalf, seeking an official accounting of how the gift funds had been used. The estate also asked to have the gift funds either (1) used as originally agreed, (2) returned, or (3) donated to a different charity chosen by the estate. The trial court ruled that the estate lacked standing to sue to enforce the gift’s terms and dismissed the lawsuit. The estate appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Mitchell, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 832,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,500 briefs - keyed to 994 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership