Also known as: living trust · inter vivos trust · revocable trust
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An inter vivos trust created during the settlor's lifetime to hold and manage property for designated beneficiaries. The trust is often revocable, allowing the settlor to retain control and amend or terminate the arrangement until death.
Lucas Lee executes a will that directs his brokerage accounts to pour over into an unfunded revocable living trust he created years earlier. At his death the executor transfers the accounts into the trust, which then distributes the assets according to the trust terms to his children.
Leah Lamb, while competent to make a will, creates a revocable living trust and later amends it to add real estate. After her death a challenger claims the amendment is invalid for lack of capacity. The court applies the same testamentary-capacity standard used for wills and upholds the amendment.
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Leonard Lowe, domiciled in State A, funds a revocable living trust with securities located in State B. After his death, beneficiaries in State C dispute which state's law governs ownership of the securities. The court weighs the contacts and policies of each state under choice-of-law principles to select the governing rule.
Luis Lopez transfers assets to himself as trustee of a revocable living trust, retaining income and a power to revoke. At his death the successor trustee distributes the property to named beneficiaries. Heirs argue the trust is an invalid testamentary disposition, but the court upholds it as a valid inter vivos trust.
Lucia Lopez funds a revocable living trust naming her nephew as beneficiary of securities. The trust instrument gives the nephew a contingent remainder that vests only if he survives her. After her death the nephew claims an immediate interest. The court recognizes the trust as valid and enforces the beneficiary's rights under its terms.
Lakewood Manufacturing funds a revocable living trust and retains broad administrative powers over the assets. At the settlor's death the IRS challenges the exclusion of the trust property from the estate. The court examines the retained powers and determines whether they cause inclusion under federal tax rules.
No. Property acquired during marriage remains marital even after transfer into a revocable living trust. The trust affects only legal title and management, not the underlying marital character of the asset.
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The capacity required is the same as that needed to make a will. A settlor who meets the testamentary-capacity standard may validly create, amend, or revoke the trust.
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A pour-over devise adds probate assets to an existing inter vivos trust or funds a trust whose terms were executed during the testator's life. The devise is validated by statute, incorporation by reference, or independent significance.
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…end our analysis. For example, in Sullivan v. Burkin , 390 Mass. 864, 867 (1984), we ruled prospectively that the assets of a revocable trust will be considered part of the “estate of the decedent” in determining the surviving spouse’s statutory share. Treating the components of the decedent’s estate plan separately, and not as…