Randolph Foundation

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The Randolph Foundation (TRF) is a New York-based foundation created in 1991 and re-organized in 2002 pursuant to a legal settlement between The Smith Richardson Foundation and other members of the Richardson family.

The Foundation has a social conservative orientation.

Heather Higgins (nee Richardson) is its President.

The Foundation was funded under the will of H. Smith Richardson, and has approximately $50 million in assets. Randolph Foundation v. Appeal From Probate Court of Westport, No. X05CV980167903S, 2001 WL 418059 (Conn. Super Ct. April 3, 2001).

Prior to May 8, 2003, the H. Smith Richardson Charitable Trust was known as The Randolph Foundation.[1] On that date, the former Randolph Foundation transferred all of its assets (with a fair market value of $49 million) to the new Randolph Foundation, which is treated as a successor organization for tax purposes. After the transfer, the original Randolph Foundation was renamed the H. Smith Richardson Charitable Trust and received an initial grant of $48.5 million from the Smith Richardson Foundation.

The Smith Richardson Foundation was funded in 1935 by the charitable contributions of Henry Smith Richardson, Sr., the principal creator of the Vicks Vaporub fortune. The foundation reported assets of $494 million in 2001, and gave away $23 million.

The Smith Richardson Foundation became especially active in supporting free market, pro-democratic and anti-communist causes in 1973, when R. Randolph Richardson became its President. Under Mr. Richardson's leadership, it was an early supporter of such intellectual movements as supply-side and monetarist econnomics, and neo-conservatism in general.

An internal family conflict resulted in a 12-year legal battle between several branches of the family between 1990-2002. As a result of this conflict, Peter Richardson (nephew of R. Randolph) became president in 1992, while a much smaller entity, The Randolph Foundation, (TRF), was created in the same year controlled largely by R. Randolph Richardson and his daughter, Heather Higgins.

SRF's policy orientation became slightly more centrist at this time, while TRF, under Ms. Higgins as President, largely abandoned economic and foreign policy, chosing instead to pursue projects associated with social conservatism.

The Randolph Foundation has been involved in a handful of lawsuits. Randolph Foundation v. Duncan, No. 00Civ.6445, 2002 WL 32862 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 11, 2002) is a case brought by the Foundation against their attorney for breach of fiduciary duty.

The Randolph Foundation was also involved in a legal dispute as the Smith Richardson Foundation. Randolph Foundation v. Appeal From Probate Court of Westport, No. X05CV980167903S, 2001 WL 418059 (Conn. Super Ct. April 3, 2001). This is a consolidation of five cases which ultimately determined that the Foundation is not a legal entity and does not have standing to sue or be sued in Connecticut.