Supplying Organs for Transplantation

The possibility that a market for organs will develop arises as a result of recent scientific successes in interchanging human parts and the consequent imbalance that has arisen between the quantity of organs supplied and the quantity demanded. Currently, and in the foreseeable future, unless our laws are changed, the quantity supplied will not equal the quantity demanded at a zero price. When useful items are in short supply in a market economy monetary inducements to increase the supply are commonly offered. The question then arises whether society should permit such inducements in order to ensure a satisfactory supply of human organs. That question does not have a short, easy answer

The Rise of the Perpetual Trust

For more than two centuries, the Rule against Perpetuities has served as the chief means of limiting a transferor\u27s power to tie up property by way of successive contingent interests. But recently, at least seventeen jurisdictions in the United States have enacted statutes abolishing the Rule in the case of perpetual (or near-perpetual) trusts. The prime mover behind this important development has been the federal Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax. This Article traces the gradual decline of the common law Rule against Perpetuities, considers the dynamics behind the recent wave of state legislation, examines the problems that might result from the rise of perpetual trusts, and suggests some possible solutions