October 19th, 2012

There aren’t a lot of cases out there dealing with reformation of trusts.  Many jurisdictions allow for reformation to conform with the settlor’s intent.  But settlors are usually understood to have meant what they said in the text of the trust instrument.  So what qualifies as an event worthy of trust reformation?

In Rockland Trust Company v. Attorney General, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts showed us one circumstance under Massachusetts law that would allow reformation of a trust:  avoiding adverse tax consequences, but with a caveat . . . . (more…)

August 29th, 2012

We’ve recently looked at the inheritance rights of children adopted out of families, now let’s look at the inheritance rights of children adopted into families.

Big news out of Massachusetts this week, as the Supreme Judicial Court ruled in Bird Anderson v. BNY Mellon, N.A. that a Massachusetts law that had significant implications for trusts and estates planners, fiduciaries, and especially adopted children was unconstitutional as applied to the trust case before it.

Let’s take a look at the law. (more…)

July 9th, 2012

Most grantors understand that their trustee shouldn’t have a court looking over its shoulder every time it exercises a discretionary power.  That’s why trustees are granted discretionary powers.

Despite a grantor’s broad grant of authority to a trustee, however, trustees often find themselves embroiled in litigation over the exercise of a discretionary power, particularly with respect to discretionary distributions.

In Thompson v. Anthony (unpublished), in the context of an unjust enrichment claim, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts considered the implication of a trust provision giving the trustees “absolute discretion” over distributions. (more…)

May 14th, 2012

It’s not that often we see a multi-count seemingly detailed breach of fiduciary duty and undue influence complaint get tossed on a motion to dismiss, but that’s what happened in Kaiden v. Zimonja (unpublished).

In affirming the trial court’s dismissal of the complaint, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts helps us understand what’s at the core of undue influence claims. (more…)