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Senate passes updates to Minnesota trust and probate codes
Summary
The Senate approved Senate File 571 to revise Minnesota's Uniform Trust Code and related probate provisions, extending certain trust durations, raising the small-trust termination threshold and clarifying directed-trust duties; the vote was 64-0.
Senate File 571, a package of technical and substantive updates to Minnesota's trust and probate laws, passed the Minnesota Senate following floor debate and a roll-call vote.
The bill, presented by Senator Wesselin, revises the Uniform Trust Code and parts of the Uniform Probate Code. "After careful study, the Bar Association has recommended updates to the trust code as well as a handful of related changes to the probate code," Wesselin said on the floor, summarizing the bill's origins.
The measure would lengthen the maximum duration a trust may exist, clarify fiduciary duties for directed trusts, and raise the size of trusts that may be terminated without a formal court proceeding from $50,000 to $150,000. The bill also expands a statute that bars estranged parents from inheriting from their children so that it applies to adult children's estates and aligns state law with the Uniform Trust Decanting Act in several respects. "The bill codifies a handful of recent appellate court decisions that construe various elements of the revised trust code," Wesselin said.
Senator Westland spoke in support, saying the bill had been carefully vetted by the Minnesota State Bar Association's probate, trust and estate section and that it was noncontroversial. "This is one of those bills. We had a thorough presentation on this in judiciary. It was not controversial, and I urge members to support this bill and vote yes," Westland said.
The secretary read the bill on third reading and the secretary later announced 64 ayes and 0 nays; the bill was passed and its title agreed to.
The bill's changes chiefly update statutory language to reflect recent court decisions and national model acts, increase the small-trust cutoff for informal termination, expand the anti-inheritance provision for estranged parents, and expressly address decanting.
Supporters said the changes will reduce unnecessary court involvement and clarify responsibilities among multiple fiduciaries in directed trusts. No floor amendments were adopted during the floor consideration recorded in the transcript.
The bill now moves on for any subsequent enrollment steps required by Senate procedures.
