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Brief Fact Summary. A settlor created a trust and reserved to himself the power to increase the income at his discretion and cease making payments to the beneficiary whenever he believed that it was in the beneficiary’s best interests. When the settlor died, the executor paid taxes on the trust principal and sued to recover the amount in district court.
Synopsis of Rule of Law. The corpus of a trust is included in the settlor’s estate where he reserves to himself a power that is inconsistent with the full termination of ownership. Trust property subject to a trustee’s power that goes beyond the court’s control must be included in the settlor’s estate.
We agree with the judge of the Probate Court in thinking that the words with full power to make purchases, investments and exchanges in such manner as to them shall seem expedient; it being my intention to give my said trustees and those who may be made such, the same dominion and control over said trust property as I now have are enabling words inserted to give to the trustees the power to deal fully and expeditiously with the estate, and that they do not release the trustees from the obligation to exercise a sound judgment and a reasonable and prudent discretion in regard to such investments as they may make under the authority given them.
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Issue. Whether a settlor and trustee of a trust who reserves to himself the right to increase the percentage of income payable to a beneficiary without any ascertainable standard, must include the value of the principal contributed to the trust in the estate tax.
Held. Yes. The settlor and trustee must include the principal in his tax because he reserved to himself a power that did not have any ascertainable standard and was inconsistent with the full termination of ownership. The settlor and trustee were allowed to increase the percentage of income to the beneficiary whenever in his opinion such an increase was desirable in view of changed circumstances. The settlor and trustee also reserved to himself the power to cease paying income when he felt it was in the son’s best interests. These powers go beyond the power of the court and are like those of ownership. Furthermore, the direction to the trustee to act in the best interests of the beneficiary does not establish an external standard because trustees have this duty under statutory law.
Discussion. The corpus of the trust is a part of the settlor’s estate because the power to decide when to increase income and cease making payments from trust property, at the absolute discretion of the trustee, is a power no different from that of full ownership if property.