Also known as: remainder beneficiary · remainderman · remainder interest beneficiary
Written by attorneys — see sources below.
Persons entitled to receive the principal assets of a trust or estate after the expiration of prior limited interests held by income or life beneficiaries. The designation identifies the class that takes the corpus once those preceding rights end and the trust or estate terminates.
Roberto Reyes conveyed land in fee tail to his son with a remainder to his daughter Renata Russo. Upon the son's death without issue, the land passed directly to Renata as the designated remainderman under the governing instrument. Renata thereby became entitled to possession and full ownership of the property.
Rebecca Ross held land in fee tail and died without issue or any designated remainderman. The property therefore returned to the original grantor as reversioner rather than passing to any future-interest holder. No remainder beneficiary existed to claim the estate.
Roger Ramirez received land in a fee tail limited to a single lifetime and named Ravi Reddy as remainderman. When Roger died without qualifying issue, the land vested in Ravi for the estate specified in the original limitation. Ravi took possession as the remainder beneficiary.
Rina Rahman held a single-lifetime fee tail and left no issue, no remainderman, and no executory interest. The land therefore passed to the reversioner upon her death. No remainder beneficiary could claim the property.
Jacob Heller's will placed his residuary estate in trust for his wife Bertha during her life and named his daughters and sons as remainder beneficiaries to receive the principal after her death. Upon Bertha's death the trustees distributed the corpus to those named remainder beneficiaries in their designated shares. The sons later became trustees while the daughters held their remainder interests.
In his will, Jacob Heller created a trust to benefit his wife Bertha Heller during her life, with the residuary estate held in trust. He appointed his brother Frank Heller as initial trustee, to be succeeded by his sons Herbert and Alan Heller. The remainder beneficiaries were his daughters Suzanne Heller and Faith Willinger, each with a 30% share, and his sons Herbert and Alan Heller, each with a 20% share. Bertha was to receive the greater of $40,000 or the total income of the trust annually. Jacob Heller died in 1986, survived by his wife Bertha. When Frank Heller died in 1997, Herbert and Alan became trustees. From 1997 until 2001, Bertha received an average annual income of approximately $190,000 from the trust. In September 2001, New York enacted legislation including the optional unitrust provision under EPTL 11-2.4, effective January 1, 2002. In March 2003, trustees Herbert and Alan elected to apply the unitrust provision, notifying beneficiaries Bertha, Suzanne, and Faith. They sought retroactive application to January 1, 2002, which reduced Bertha's annual income to approximately $70,000. Sandra Davis, as attorney-in-fact for Bertha Heller, commenced a proceeding in Surrogate’s Court on August 1, 2003, moving for summary judgment to annul the unitrust election, revoke the trustees' letters, and determine that the election could not be retroactive. Surrogate’s Court granted the motion regarding retroactivity but denied annulment of the election. Davis appealed, and the trustees cross-appealed. The Appellate Division affirmed the denial of annulment and reversed on retroactivity, granting leave and certifying a question to the Court of Appeals.
View caseRemainder beneficiaries receive the principal assets after the income or life beneficiaries' interests expire. The trust instrument designates this class to take the corpus upon termination. Distribution to them ends the trust.
Modern law treats language such as "to my next of kin" as a valid remainder gift to that class rather than a retained reversion. The class members therefore take directly as remainder beneficiaries. Marcus, as Lila's only surviving relative, qualified and received the funds.
Trustees owe remainder beneficiaries the duties of care and loyalty. These duties require prudent management of trust assets and impartial treatment of all beneficiaries. Remainder beneficiaries may enforce these duties through appropriate proceedings.
A revocation of the trust before the testator's death causes the pour-over devise to lapse unless the will provides otherwise. The residence then passes through the estate rather than to the remainder beneficiaries named in the trust. Julian therefore lost his claim to the residence.
…Bell Co. , 138 Miss. 548, 103 So. 353, 355 (1925) (merging life estate with remainder when life tenant conveyed her interest to remainderman); Treiber v. Citizens State Bank , 598 N.W.2d 96, 97 (N.D. 1999) (merging a life estate with remainder interest in two-thirds of the property to create fee simple in…