In a precedent-setting decision, a three-judge New Jersey appellate panel has ruled that donors are entitled to a refund if an organization they have supported does not use the gift as was stipulated, the Star-Ledger reports.

The ruling upholds a trial court decision in favor of Bernard and Jeanne Adler, who between 2002 and 2004 made a series of donations totaling $50,000 to SAVE, A Friend to Homeless Animals, a no-kill animal shelter founded in 1941 to serve the Princeton area, for a facilities expansion that would enable it to house larger and older animals. In February 2006, the shelter told supporters of the project, including the Adlers, that it was merging with a charitable foundation and, instead of proceeding with the project, would build a smaller facility in nearby Montgomery Township. After several failed attempts to persuade the shelter to voluntarily refund their gift, the Adlers sued.

A trial court found in favor of the Adlers and the appeals court agreed. "We believe that responsible charities will welcome this decision because it will assure prospective donors that the expressed conditions of their gift will be legally enforceable," said Judge Jose Fuentes, writing for the panel.

Nonprofit fundraising experts told the Star-Ledger that the decision should not negatively affect nonprofits in the state because most are careful to honor the intent of donors. "In the end, the appellate decision relied on the...most basic principle of charitable giving: What was the donor's intent?" Stuart Polkowitz, an attorney for the Adlers, told the Star-Ledger. "This is a rare case in terms of published opinions where we actually had a live donor, so the court could go right to the facts."