Relates to testamentary disposition to trustee under, or in accordance with, terms of existing inter vivos trust and the timing of the transfer of assets and signing of the will.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7519
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
May 8, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. STIRPE, DINOWITZ -- (at request of the Office of
Court Administration) -- read once and referred to the Committee on
Judiciary
AN ACT to amend the estates, powers and trusts law, in relation to
testamentary disposition to trustee under, or in accordance with,
terms of existing inter vivos trust
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 3-3.7 of the estates, powers and trusts law, para-
2 graph (a) as amended by chapter 139 of the laws of 1997 and such section
3 as renumbered by chapter 472 of the laws of 1967, is amended to read as
4 follows:
5 § 3-3.7 Testamentary disposition to trustee under, or in accordance with
6 terms of existing inter vivos trust
7 (a) A testator [or testatrix] may by will dispose of or appoint all or
8 any part of [his or her] such testator's estate to a trustee of a trust,
9 the terms of which are evidenced by a written instrument executed by the
10 testator [or testatrix], the testator [or testatrix] and some other
11 person, or some other person, including a trust established for the
12 receipt of the proceeds of an annuity or pure endowment contract, or of
13 a thrift, savings, pension, retirement, death benefit, stock bonus, or
14 profit-sharing plan or system or a funded or unfunded life, group life,
15 industrial life or accident and health insurance trust (although the
16 [settlor] person establishing such trust has reserved any or all rights
17 of ownership of the insurance contracts), regardless of [the existence,
18 size or character of the corpus of such insurance trust or other trust]
19 whether any assets have been transferred to the trust prior to the death
20 of the testator; provided that [such] the trust instrument is identified
21 in the will and is executed by the person establishing the trust prior
22 to or contemporaneously with the execution of the will and, unless such
23 person is the sole trustee, by at least one trustee thereof prior to the
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10069-01-9
A. 7519 2
1 death of the testator, in the manner [provided for in 7-1.17, prior to
2 or contemporaneously with the execution of the will, and such trust
3 instrument is identified in such will] required by the laws of this
4 state for the recording of a conveyance of real property or, in lieu
5 thereof, in the presence of two witnesses who shall affix their signa-
6 tures to the trust instrument.
7 (b) The testamentary disposition or appointment is valid, even though:
8 (1) The trust instrument is amendable or revocable, or both, provided,
9 however, that the disposition or appointment shall be given effect in
10 accordance with the terms of the trust instrument, including an amend-
11 ment thereto, as they appear in writing on the date of the testator's
12 death and, where the testator so directs, including amendments to the
13 trust instrument after his or her death, if the instrument evidencing
14 such amendment is executed and acknowledged in the manner [herein]
15 provided for [executing and acknowledging the instrument which it
16 amends] in paragraph (b) of 7-1.17.
17 (2) The right is reserved in such trust instrument (A) to exercise any
18 power over any property transferred to or held in the trust or (B) to
19 direct during the lifetime of the [settlor] person establishing the
20 trust or any other person, the persons and organizations to whom or in
21 whose behalf the income shall be paid or the principal distributed.
22 (3) The trust instrument or any amendment thereto was not executed and
23 attested in accordance with the formalities prescribed by 3-2.1.
24 (c) The property so disposed of or appointed by will becomes a part of
25 the trust to which it is given, and title thereto vests in the trustee
26 to be administered and disposed of in accordance with the terms of the
27 trust instrument.
28 (d) Any disposition or appointment to the trustee made by a testator
29 who died prior to the effective date of this section, which would be
30 invalid under the applicable law of this state pre-existing the effec-
31 tive date of this section, shall be construed to create a testamentary
32 trust under and in accordance with the terms of the trust instrument
33 which the testator originally intended should embrace the property
34 disposed of or appointed, as such terms appear in such trust instrument
35 at the date of the testator's death.
36 (e) A revocation or termination of the trust before the death of the
37 testator shall cause the disposition or appointment to fail, unless the
38 testator has made an alternative disposition.
39 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all
40 testamentary dispositions to a trustee occurring on or after such effec-
41 tive date.
