Gifts Anyone Can Afford

April 6, 2010

Are you looking for a no-hassle way to support the Institute for Justice? How about one that costs you nothing now? Here are two ideas to consider.

Include IJ in your will or living trust.

Bequests are the easiest and most common way to include a charity in your long-term planning, and they are critically important to ensuring IJ’s future viability and strength.

Including IJ in your plans can be as simple as adding a codicil to an existing will. If you would like to make a bequest, just review the following language with your attorney:

I give, devise, and bequeath to the Institute for Justice, tax identification number 52-1744337, 901 North Glebe Road, Suite 900, Arlington, Virginia 22203, (insert total amount, percentage, or remainder of estate) to be used for general operations (or your designated purpose).

You can set aside a specific dollar amount or a percentage of your estate, or give IJ any assets left over after you have provided for your loved ones.

Designate IJ as the beneficiary of your retirement plan, insurance policy, or other cash account.

Naming IJ as a beneficiary of these accounts allows you to make a gift without the need to change an existing will or other financial plans. And like charitable bequests, these gifts may be revoked if your plans or circumstances change.

Because of the unfavorable tax consequences of leaving tax-deferred accounts (like many retirement plans) to non-spousal beneficiaries, these assets can be particularly good candidates for charitable giving. For example, when you name a child as the beneficiary of a retirement account, the account is subject to estate taxation. On top of that, your child would have to pay income tax on the distribution of these plan assets. As a charitable gift, however, the full amount of the account goes to IJ and our fight for liberty.

These gifts will help secure IJ’s future for years to come. Please let us know if you have already made arrangements to include IJ in your plans. Doing so allows us the opportunity to express our appreciation for your support through membership in our Four Pillars Society, which recognizes friends and supporters who have made a commitment to defending and preserving liberty through their estate plans.

For more information, please do not hesitate to contact Melanie Hildreth, the director of IJ’s Four Pillars Society, at (703) 682-9320 x. 222 or [email protected].

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