Trust Document Example

(added March 7, 2002)

Warning! Do not use this example in its present form perform the necessary research
to modify the example to meet your needs and legal requirements. Definitive variables
are colored red this example is designed specifically for the common law of the united
States of America, however, it contents may be altered to become applicable under the
organic laws of other nations.
CONTRACT AND DECLARATION OF TRUST
FOR VALUABLE CONSIDERATION, receipt of which is acknowledged. [creator],
hereinafter referred to as the "CREATOR," and [first trustee], hereinafter referred to as the
"FIRST TRUSTEE," enter into this CONTRACT AND DECLARATION OF TRUST on the
day, month and year hereinafter set forth.
ARTICLE I. THE CONTRACT.
1.01. This document establishes a common law contractual relationship whereby the
Trustee(s) agree(s) to accept title to certain property exchanged in Trust for Certificates of
Beneficial Interest.
1.02. The Trustee(s), recognizing a fiduciary obligation, agree to manage the Trust property
for the Beneficial Certificate Holders. Should more than one Trustee be appointed to manage
the affairs of the Trust, the Trust's property shall be held in joint tenancy.
1.03. The Trust through its Trustee(s) shall allocate 100 units of beneficial interest in the
form of Certificates of Beneficial Interest.
1.04. The Creator by this instrument offers certain property to the Trustee(s).
All private property is set forth in Exhibit "A" attached to this agreement and
incorporated herein by reference.
All real property is set forth in Exhibit "B" attached to this agreement and
incorporated herein by reference.
1.05. The First Trustee, by executing this instrument, accepts the terms and conditions of this
Trust Indenture.
1.06. The First Trustee accepts on behalf of the Trust the property conveyed by the Creator
in exchange for Units of Beneficial Interest. The transfer made the subject of this paragraph
shall not be characterized as either a gift or a sale.
ARTICLE II. TRUST NAME.
2.01. The name of the Trust shall be:
[trust name]
ARTICLE III. TRUST DOMICILE.
3.01. The Trust shall be domiciled as follows:
[trust domicile address]
3.02. The Trust shall be interpreted and construed under the common law of the united States
of America.
3.03. The domicile of the Trust may be changed to any other sites deemed wise, prudent and
necessary by the Trustee(s).
ARTICLE IV. TRUST CLASSIFICATION.
4.01. The Trust shall not operate as a partnership, association, joint venture, corporation or
statutory Trust. It shall be construed, and in fact and in common law is, an irrevocable

complex Trust.
4.02. The Creator retains no control over the administration of the Trust and/or the ability to
revoke, modify, terminate or change in any manner the Trust document. The Creator has no
sub rosa or other arrangement with the Trustee(s) of the Trust that would cause the
Trustee(s) to act at the direction of the Creator. The Trustee(s) shall only act as an
independent fiduciary in the best interest of the Beneficial Unit Holders.
4.03 This Trust shall be construed by way of legal principles which guarantee the right of
Common Law Contract.
ARTICLE V. TRUST DURATION.
5.01. The Trust shall come into legal existence upon its execution by the creator and First
Trustee and shall endure for [trust life] years. The Trustee(s) shall have the power, by
unanimous decision, to terminate the Trust at an earlier date or to renew the Trust for an
additional [trust life] years. Unless the Trust's term is appropriately renewed, its corpus shall
be distributed to the holders of the units of Beneficial Interest.
ARTICLE VI. TRUSTEE CAPACITY AND POWERS.
6.01. The Trustee(s) may engage in any type of activity which the Trustee(s) deem in the
best interest of the Trust including, but not limited to, buying, selling, borrowing, loaning,
pledging, or hypothecating assets, and owning stock or entire charters of corporations,
partnerships, associations or other Trusts.
6.02. No bond shall be required of the First Trustee. Any future Trustee shall not be required
to be bonded unless the First Trustee or all of the members of a Board of Trustee require a
bond.
6.03. The Trustee(s) shall possess all powers necessary to operate and manage the Trust for
the benefit of the Beneficial Unit Holders.
6.04. The number of Trustees may be increased if such an increase acts as a benefit to the
Trust. The decision of a Board of Trustees must always be unanimous.
6.05. The Trustee(s) shall, at the Trust's first regular meeting, designate one or more
contingent Trustees who shall replace the then existing Trustee(s) in the event all of the
Trustee(s) shall die or simultaneously become incapacitated.
6.06. Should all of the "sitting" Trustee(s) and contingent Trustees simultaneously die or
become incapacitated, a Beneficial Unit Holder may apply to a Court of competent
jurisdiction requesting a replacement or replacements.
6.07. The Trustee(s)' liability hereunder shall be that of one who holds a fiduciary
relationship with another.
6.08. The Trustee(s) shall have the authority to appoint one or more agents of the Trust to act
as signators for the Trust on all checking and savings accounts.
6.09. The Trustee(s) shall have the authority to appoint one or more agents to manage Trust
assets and to advise the Trustee(s) and to accomplish any other functions endemic to the
Trust purpose and operation.
6.10. The Trustee(s) shall have the authority to reasonable compensate Trustees and others
who perform services beneficial to the Trust.
6.11. The Trustee(s) shall maintain books, accounts and records and minutes of all regular
meetings relative to Trust administration and business.
ARTICLE VII. RESTRICTIONS.
7.01. All remunerations of money or fair value, in any form, taken into the Trust, shall not be

available to the Creator in his capacity as Creator.

7.02. The Trust shall not be held directly liable for any obligations of whatsoever nature of
the Creator, Trustee(s) or the Beneficial Unit Holders.
7.03. The Beneficial Unit Holders may not, in any manner whatsoever, control the activities
of the Trustee(s) including decisions relating to the disbursement of the remunerations of
money or fair value, in any form, or corpus of the Trust.
7.04. The death, insolvency, bankruptcy or incapacity of any Trustees or Beneficial Unit
Holder shall not affect the operation or continuity of the Trust.
ARTICLE VIII. MEETINGS.
8.01. The Trustee(s) shall provide for meetings at stated intervals without notice. Special
meetings may be called by one or more of the Trustees upon three (3) days notice, which
notice may not be waived. Participation at such meetings may not require the physical
presence of the participants, but may be conducted by telephone or other acceptable medium.
ARTICLE IX. BENEFICIAL UNIT HOLDERS.
9.01. The interest of any Beneficial Unit Holder shall be freely transferable or assignable.
9.02. Death, insolvency or bankruptcy of any certificate holder, or the transfer of his/her
certificate by sale, gift, device or descent, shall not operate as a dissolution of this instrument
or in any manner affect the instrument or its operation. Ownership of certificates shall not
entitle the holder to any legal title in or to the property, nor shall the death of a certificate
holder entitle his/her heirs or legal representative to demand any portion or division of the
property of the Trust, but said successor may succeed to the same equitable or distributable
interest.
9.03. To the extent permitted by law, the interests of Beneficial Unit Holders shall not be
subject to attachment or the claims of creditors.
9.04. The Certificates of Beneficial Interest of this Trust are divided into 100 units or parts
thereof. The units are nonassessable,
nontaxable
and nonnegotiable.
9.05. Any Beneficial Unit Holder may surrender to the Trustee(s) all right, title and interest
to any Beneficial Units held by said unit holder. The Trustee(s) may issue or not said units
taking into account any suggestions made by the previous holder of said units.
9.06. Any Beneficial Unit Holder may name any person or persons to receive his/her units
upon death. Such desire shall be conveyed to the Trustee(s) for the Trustee(s) approval.
9.07. The Trustee(s) may, but are not required to, distribute any and all remunerations of
money or fair value, in any form, to Beneficial Unit Holders if there are any distributable
remunerations of money or fair value, in any form, and not to distribute would cause the
Trust to suffer a tax impact.
9.08. The Trustee(s) will make a determination as to the existence or nonexistence
of
distributable remunerations of money or fair value, in any form, periodically but at no
greater interval than semiannually.
9.09. Any Beneficial Unit Holder may waive right to any distribution if a written declaration
of such waiver is delivered to the Trustee(s) prior to the date of distribution and such waiver
is accepted by the Trustee(s). If the waiver is accepted, that portion of the distribution shall
be allocated to the remaining Beneficial Unit Holders on a pro rata basis.

Said waiver would not be effective for future distributions, and the process set forth in this
paragraph would have to be reemployed for each subsequent distribution if the Beneficial
Unit Holders did not want to receive same.
ARTICLE X. MISCELLANEOUS.
10.01. This Indenture is irrevocable and may only be amended to better carry out its purpose
or in order to comply with any applicable laws or regulation.
10.02. In the event it becomes necessary to remove a Trustee, Beneficial Unit Holders may
apply to a court of competent jurisdiction as an appropriate forum.
10.03. If any word, phrase or heading is deemed to be unenforceable, then the remainder of
the agreement shall remain in full force and effect.
10.04. Should the Trustee(s) disagree concerning a given course of action or the construction
of any portion of this agreement, then any Trustee may initiate an arbitration under the
common law.
10.05. The purpose of this Trust is:
[trust purpose]
10.06. The goal of this Trust is:
[trust goal]
CERTIFICATION OF TRUST INDENTURE
[trust name]
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, THE CREATOR AND FIRST TRUSTEE have hereunto set into
their hands and seal in recognition of the fact that the verbiage contained in this Trust
Instrument was drawn in recognition of the conveyance and acceptance of the property and
the obligations and the duties herein assigned.
CREATOR: [creator signature]
FIRST TRUSTEE: [first trustee signature]
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
NOTARY PUBLIC
State of [state], County of [county]
On this date [date], before me, the undersigned Notary Public in and for said State,
personally appeared the above named Creator and First Trustee, who are known to me or
proved to me on the basis of satisfactory evidence, to be the persons who executed this Trust
Indenture and who have read its terms and conditions and who have agreed to be bound by
them.
Notary in & for said State & County: [notary state & county]
My Commission Expires: [notary expiration]
Seal: [notary seal]

!!!Notes about trust types

delete this page before printing and after editing the trust terms and formatting
for filing with county where born
Living Trust Basics
With a Living Trust, you can set up a flexible estate plan that fits your needs.
Created during your lifetime, a Living Trust allows you to transfer your assets to a separate legal entity.
One common benefit of a Living Trust is that it helps prevent your estate from going through the
probate process, saving time for the family members you leave behind.
Create a Living Trust to control your assets and property while providing for your family after your
death.
Note : This trust is NOT appropriate for individuals whose estate (including life insurance proceeds and
retirement plans) exceeds the federal estate tax applicable exclusion amount of $5,250,000.
Use a Living Trust if:
You own property to be dispersed upon your death.
You want to designate a person or organization to receive your assets, including Digital Assets, after
your death.
You want to designate a person to act as your executor and carry out your wishes.
You want to have a system in place for the management of your assets and the care of your children if
you become
unable to manage or care for them yourself.
Other names for a Living Trust
Inter Vivos Trust, Revocable Living Trust.
How Living Trusts Work:
First, youll need to create a trust and transfer
ownership of some of your property to the trust. When doing so, name
yourself (and your spouse, if you so choose) as trustees. This means
that youll retain control of the property. Then, in your Living Trust,
name the beneficiaries you want to receive this property after your
death. Appoint a competent and responsible successor trustee to handle
the distribution of this property
Living Trust v. Will:
One of the most common questions people have when
theyre creating an estate plan is whats the difference between a
Living Trust and a Will? You should know that while laws do vary state
to state, there are a few important differences to keep in mind:
Living Trusts help avoid probate:
The probate process can be costly and can significantly cut into the
property and assets you leave your heirs. While creating a Living Trust
is a bit more difficult than making a Will, it does allow your heirs to avoid probate,
thereby keeping more of your assets and getting those assets much more quickly.

A Living Trust is private:

Wills are, in the end, public documents.
A Living Trust, on the other hand, is not.
If you have certain assets youd like to keep private or if the
idea of your last wishes becoming public isnt something youre
comfortable with, a Living Trust might be right for you.
Transfer of property:
Both a Will and a Living Trust allow you to transfer property.
In a Will, you simply name the property.
In a Trust, however, you must make certain to transfer that property into the trust.
You may still use the property in question while youre alive, but you wont technically be the owner,
since youve placed it in a Trust.
Notary Public:
In some states, you dont need the presence of a notary public when signing and witnessing a
Will. But for a Trust, you do. Make sure your Trust is legal by signing it with a certified notary public
or private signature medallion stamp.
Guardianship:
You cannot name a guardian for your children in a Living Trust.
To do so, you must use a Will.
This is why parents of small children often create both documents with the help of a trained estate
planning attorney.

Revocable vs. Irrevocable Trusts:

The most common types of Trusts are Revocable Trusts.
This means, simply, that you have the right and the ability to
nullify the Trust itself and either create a new one or use other estate
planning documents to organize your affairs. An Irrevocable Trust, on
the other hand, is a much more complicated document, generally created
by those with a lot in the way of assets. Although its never a bad idea
to have an estate planning attorney look over your Trust, its
especially important if youre going to make your Trust irrevocable.
Other estate planning documents:
A Living Trust is just part of a complete estate plan.
Here are some other documents you should consider:
Last Will and Testament
Power of Attorney
Living Will
Codicil to Will
If you have any questions about whats right for you and your estate plan,
If you'd like to read more about Living Trusts and other estate planning essentials, Estate Planning
Guides are available at local libraries.

How to Choose a Name for Your Trust

2014
A living trust allows you to transfer property to the people and charities of your choice without going
through probate, the court-supervised process of distributing the estate of a deceased person. A trust
avoids probate because assets transferred into the trust are held in the trusts name and not in your name
as an individual.
This brings us to some common questions regarding a living trustwhat should you name it?
And can you change it once you have named it? Is privacy a consideration?
Why should I be concerned with naming a living trust?
In order for a trust to actually hold title to property, whether it is a home, brokerage account, business
interest, etc., the trust must be identifiable. The way a trust is identifiable is by its formal name.
Contrary to what many people think, you dont have to name your trust your full family name. You do
have other options.

What are some considerations when naming a trust?

Sometimes a name might feel too long or you may be concerned about privacy issues. When you name
a trust, the name you choose for the actual title of the trust will be in the title of each asset in the trust.
Plus, in most cases, the person(s) transferring assets into the trust are the trustees of the trust. The name
of the trustee of the trust will be on title of your trust assets.
So, if you put a bank account into your trust, you would need to rename the bank account to be your
name, as trustee, followed by the name of the trust. For example, if someone named John H. Smith
transferred his bank account into his trust named The John H. and Mildred R. Smith Living Trust and
was the trustee, the owner of the account would be John Smith, Trustee of the John H. and Mildred R.
Smith Living Trust.
In light of this requirement, people often choose to shorten the name of the trustin this example
perhaps to the Smith Family Trust rather than the John H. and Mildred R. Smith Family Trust. The
title of the trust accounts and real estate would be John H. Smith, Trustee of the Smith Family Trust.
Do I need to include the word family in my trust?
No, it is not a requirement to use the word family in your trust name. You might prefer simply a
combination of last names. Or another name entirely.
If I dont use a family name in the trust name, what are my options?
You can name a trust anything you like, and the name can be long, short, simple or complicated. When
choosing a name, keep in mind that the name will be in the title of any asset held in the trust. This
consideration may inspire some to keep the name on the short side.
There are situations where the owner chooses not to include his or her personal name in the trust title.
For example, if someone has a trust that will only ever hold a particular piece of real estate and nothing
more, the owner might name the trust after the property address. So, using the above example, if John
H. Smith decided to name his trust after a particular property, like The Main Street Trust, title to the
property would be John H. Smith, Trustee of the Main Street Trust.
Note that if any property held in the trust is transferred out of the trust, and later transferred back into
the trust, the same name of the trust must be used again, unless the trust's name is changed as
mentioned below.
Can I name someone else as trustee of the trust and protect my privacy?
You can name someone else as trustee, but you do so at your own peril. Usually trusts provide that
someone else takes over only if the owner is not competent to handle his or her assets, or has passed
away. You would essentially be signing over control of your assets to someone else while you are still
living. For most people, this would not be advisable.
One notable exception involves celebrities purchasing new homes. They often create trusts just to hold
their homes and name a trusted advisor as trustee. That way, their name is nowhere to be found in
connection with the property. In doing so, they would have to work closely with an attorney.

Should I simply name the living trust after myself or a family member?
It is most common to include at least the last name of a person putting their property into the trust in
the trusts name. It is, after all, that persons property.
Do I have to include the date on which the trust was signed in the name of the trust?
Although you dont have to use the date of the trust's signing in the trust name, having it in the title is
useful for future reference when seeking to identify the trust. Its also helpful to include the date if a
person has more than one trust with similar names.
Can I change the name of a living trust?
By its very nature, a living trust is changeable. But if you do change the name of the trust, you must
also retitle the trust assets in the new trust name.
Final Thoughts on Naming a Trust
Once you've decided to create a living trust, naming it appropriately is an early step in creating an
estate plan that works for you. By taking into consideration the factors discussed above, you can better
ensure the name you choose is right for you.
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