Bill Text: NY S05513 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: 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.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-10-04 - SIGNED CHAP.352 [S05513 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S05513-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5513 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE May 3, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sen. HOYLMAN -- (at request of the Office of Court Admin- istration) -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed 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,18size 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. LBD10069-01-9S. 5513 2 1 death of the testator, in the manner [provided for in 7-1.17, prior to2or contemporaneously with the execution of the will, and such trust3instrument 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 it16amends] 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.
