Pennsylvania Trust Guide (Includes book + NEW interactice ebook)

A Handbook for Trustees and Their Advisors
Fifth Edition

1 Volume, Soft-Cover

AUTHORS: JULIEANNE E. STEINBACHER, ESQ., SAMANTHA K. WOLFE, ESQ. and JENNA L. FRANKS, ESQ.
Published: January, 2023 (5th Ed.) (Previous Editions: 2008, 2010 & 2014, 2018); $269 Most recent update: 2024 Supplement published November 2023.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2008935708
ISBN: 979-8-9858848-3-8
 

The idea behind this title was to create a practical guide for those in the profession who practice trust law, fund trusts, or advise trustees. With that in mind, the authors compiled a publication that allows a practitioner to examine the applicable statutes, benefit from practice tips, and read a synopsis of pertinent points. When applicable, the authors added examples to illustrate the law and sample forms to aid the practitioner.

This title focuses on the changes brought about Pennsylvania's Uniform Trust Act. These modifications must be understood by a practitioner who is establishing and funding trusts or advising trustees. Please review the Detailed Table of Contents below. All in all, this title is a combination of statutory and case law analysis, and practical considerations and forms. 

As part of your subscription to PA Trust Guide, you can access the ebook through the Bisel website. The ebook now has links to statutes, rules, regulations, and full court opinions. Just click on the links for immediate access to the up-to-date law.

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

      1.1. Introduction

      1.2. Definitions

      1.3. “Default” and Mandatory Rules

      1.4. Creditors’ Claims and Spendthrift Provisions

      1.5. Notice and Reporting Requirements

      1.6. Statute of Limitations

      1.7. Special Rules for Revocable Trusts

      1.8. Creation and Validity of Trusts

      1.9. Bond

      1.10. Representation and Non-Judicial Settlements

      1.11. Trustee Compensation

      1.12. Removal of Trustee

      1.13. Trust Modification or Termination

      1.14. Liability of the Trustee

      1.15. Liability of Persons Dealing with the Trustee

      1.16. Repeal of Rule Against Perpetuities

      1.17. Conclusion

Chapter 2: PENNSYLVANIA’S PRUDENT INVESTOR RULE

      2.1. Introduction

      2.2. To Whom Does the Prudent Investor Rule Not Apply?

      2.3. To Whom Does the Prudent Investor Rule Apply?

      2.4. What Is the Prudent Investor Rule?

      2.5. Duty to Diversify

      2.6. No Duty to Diversify

      2.7. Retention of Inception Assets

      2.8. Delegation of Investment and Management Functions

      2.9. Delegation to a Cofiduciary

      2.10. Retention of Uninvested Cash and Temporary Investments

      2.11. Life Insurance

      2.12. Mutual Funds

      2.13. Degree of Care

      2.14. Evaluation of a Fiduciary’s Decisions

Chapter 3: PENNSYLVANIA UNIFORM PRINCIPAL AND INCOME ACT

      3.1. Introduction

      3.2. Definitions Under the Pennsylvania Uniform Principal and Income Act—§ 8102

      3.3. To Whom Does the Pennsylvania Uniform Principal and Income Act Apply?—§ 8102

      3.4. When Does the Pennsylvania Uniform Principal and Income Act Apply?—§ 8103

      3.5. Trustee’s Power to Adjust—§ 8104(a) and (b)

      3.6. Trustee’s Power to Convert to a Unitrust—§ 8105

     

Chapter 4: TYPES OF TRUSTS

      4.1. Introduction

      4.2. Trusts, Generally

      4.3. Revocable Trusts

      4.4. Testamentary Trusts

      4.5. Testamentary Trusts

      4.6. Inter Vivos Trusts

      4.7. Special Needs Trusts/Supplemental Needs Trusts

      4.8. Education Trusts

      4.9. Charitable Trusts

      4.10. Trusts for Care of an Animal

      4.11. Spendthrift Trusts

      4.12. Credit Shelter Trusts

      4.13. Trust for Minors

      4.14. Trusts for Unknown Owners of Oil and Gas Interests

      4.15. Standby Guardianship

Chapter 5: A CLOSER LOOK AT SPECIAL NEEDS TRUSTS

      5.1. Introduction

      5.2. Three Types of Special Needs Trusts

      5.3. Supplemental Security Income

      5.4. Purposes of a Special Needs Trust

      5.5. Home Ownership

      5.6. Guidelines for Administering a Special Needs Trust

      5.7. Sections of the Social Security Administration’s Program Operations Manual System

      Appendix 5.A. Bills S.349 September 10, 2015

      Appendix 5.B. Policy Clarification for Trusts

      Appendix 5.C. PA HB 1319

      Appendix 5.D. Appendix 5.D. H.R. 4813

      Appendix 5.E. Appendix 5.D. H.R. 4794

      Appendix 5.F. Appendix 5.D. H.R. 4795

Chapter 6: PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR ESTABLISHING A TRUST

      6.1. Capacity

      6.2. Requirements for Creating a Trust

      6.3. Power to Create a Trust

      6.4. Contesting the Validity of a Trust

      6.5. Choosing a Trustee

      6.6. Powers of the Trustee

      6.7. Miscellaneous Provisions

      6.8. Trust Protectors

      Appendix 6.A.  Senate Bill on Digital Assets

Chapter 7: PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR FUNDING A TRUST

      7.1. Introduction

      7.2. Getting Started

      7.3. Real Estate

      7.4. Annuity Contracts

      7.5. Bank Accounts 

      7.6. Brokerage Accounts

      7.7. Individual Retirement Accounts

      7.8. Life Insurance Policies

      7.9. Mutual Funds

      7.10. Savings Bonds

      7.11. Stocks 

      7.12. Beneficiary Designations

      7.13. Income

      7.14. Funding by an Agent Under a Power of Attorney

      7.15. Tracking Trust Funding

      7.16. Pennsylvania Uniform Fraudulent Transfers Act

      Appendix 7.A. Authorization for Release of Financial Information

      Appendix 7.B. Power of Attorney Letter of Certification

      Appendix 7.C. Asset List

      Appendix 7.D. Letter of Instruction to Transfer a Bank Account

      Appendix 7.E. Letter of Instruction to Transfer a Brokerage Account

      Appendix 7.F. Cover Letter to Transfer Stock

      Appendix 7.G. Letter of Instruction to Transfer Stock

      Appendix 7.H. Request for Information—Life Insurance and Annuity

      Appendix 7.I. Fax Cover Sheet Requesting Information

      Appendix 7.J. Trust Funding Status Sheet

      Appendix 7.K. Trust Funding Tracking Sheet

      Appendix 7.L. Funding Your Trust

      Appendix 7.M. Letter to IRA Plan Administrator

      Appendix 7.N. Attachment for Change of Beneficiary Form

      Appendix 7.O. Chart of Beneficiary Designations

      Appendix 7.P. Authorization for Release of Financial Information for Trustee

 Chapter 8: CONSIDERATIONS FOR TRANSFERRING REAL ESTATE TO OR FROM A TRUST

      8.1. What Information Should Be Included in the Deed?

      8.2. Use of Quitclaim Deeds in Conveying Real Estate to a Trust

      8.3. Realty Transfer Tax Liability for the Conveyance of Real Estate to a Trust

      8.4. Realty Transfer Tax Liability for the Conveyance of Real Estate from a Trust

      8.5. Transferring Real Estate to a Trust Via a Power of Attorney or Guardianship

      Appendix 8.A. Explanation to Facilitate Reading of Legislative Bills

      Appendix 8.B. House Bill No. 1429

      Appendix 8.C. Pennsylvania Powers of Attorney Statute

      Appendix 8.D. Senate Bill No. 1104

Chapter 9: PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR SERVING AS TRUSTEE

      9.1. Introduction

      9.2. Trustee’s Powers

      9.3. Trustee’s Responsibilities

      9.4.Trustee’s Duty to Inform and Report

Chapter 10: REFORMING, TERMINATING, AND AMENDING TRUSTS

      10.1. Introduction

      10.2. Trust Termination

      10.3. Trust Modification or Termination

      10.4. Modification Without Consent of Settlor

      10.5. Revocable Trust Amendment

      10.6. Division of a Trust

      10.7. Decanting a Trust

Chapter 11: TAXATION OF TRUSTS

      11.1. Grantor Versus Non Grantor Trusts

      11.2. Income Taxation of Trusts

      11.3. Capital Gains and Losses

      11.4. Grantor Trusts

      11.5. Tax Basis

      11.6. Pennsylvania Inheritance Taxes

      11.7. Federal Estate and Gift Tax

      11.8. SECURE Act 

      Appendix 11.A. 2022 Tax Rate Schedule

      Appendix 11.B. Final Regulations for Qualified Business Income Deductions

      Appendix 11.C. Notice 2018-64

      Appendix 11.D. Excerpt from House Bill 262. 2020 Act 97

      Appendix 11.E. Link to Proposed Regulations for the SECURE Act
           

Chapter 12: TRUST SITUS

      12.1. Introduction

      12.2. Location of the Trust’s Situs

      12.3. Four Key Factors

      12.4. Changing the Trust’s Situs

      12.5. Choice of Law Clauses

Julieanne is the founding shareholder of Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak, an elder care and special needs law firm established in 2002. The firm also offers its clients quality representation in litigation matters. Julieanne is certified as an Elder Law Attorney (CELA) by the National Elder Law Foundation and holds an LL.M degree in elder law and estate planning from Western New England School of Law. She has a “Superb” AVVO Rating for attorneys and was a Super Lawyers Rising Star. Julieanne is a recipient of a 2015 PA Bar Association (PBA) Special Achievement Award, which recognized her dedication and commitment to the PBA's Quality of Life/Balance Committee. 

Julieanne is the President of Estate & Long Term Care Planning, Inc., a company which provides continuing education for professionals in Pennsylvania and coaching for attorneys throughout the nation. She has extensive lecturing experience as a speaker for The Pennsylvania State University Tax Institutes and Tax Week, PICPA-Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants, National Association of Tax Practitioners—PA Chapter, Pennsylvania Society of Public Accountants, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Elder Law Institute, Pennsylvania Bar Association, Back to Basics, Tax Pro Seminars, and the University of Illinois. In addition, she has conducted numerous local and national seminars for various organizations.

 

Julieanne is the President of Estate & Long Term Care Planning, Inc., a company which provides continuing education for the public and professionals in Pennsylvania and coaching for attorneys throughout the nation. She has estates, trusts, and taxation. She also has published materials in various newsletters and newspapers. Julieanne co-authored two books about trusts, Pennsylvania Trust Guide (Edition I and II) and the Pennsylvania Special Needs Planning Guide, both published by George T. Bisel Company, Co., Inc. Most recently, Julieanne joined by nine other leading elder law attorneys from across the nation, co-authored Protect Your Family! Don’t Write a Blank Check to the Nursing Home, a collaborative writing, broken down in layman’s terms, offering readers the essential tools and knowledge for effective long-term care planning. She is also a co-author of Protect Your Legacy! What You Really Need to Know for the Second Half of Life.

 

Samantha K. Wolfe, Esquire, LL.M. in Taxation:

Samantha is the founder and owner of The Law Offices of Samantha K. Wolfe, LLC in Waynesboro, PA established in 2020. Her areas of concentration are estate planning, asset protection planning, long-term care pre-planning, Medicaid planning, special needs planning, business succession planning, federal estate and gift tax planning, oil and gas lease planning, and estate administration and probate. Samantha has a "Superb" AVVO Rating for attorneys and was named a Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2022.

 

Samantha has presented continuing education instruction for multiple programs through the Pennsylvania Bar Institute including a program titled "A Fresh Look at FLPs" regarding the use of family limited partnerships in business succession planning; a program titled "What Every Elder Law Attorney Needs to Know About FLPs" addressing whether family limited partnerships are the best planning technique to use when dealing with elder law issues; a program titled "Estate Planning for Oil, Gas, and Mineral Interests"; a program titled "Succession Planning for Your Elder Law Client’s Family Owned Business"; a program titled "Asset Protection for the Middle Class"; a program titled "Post-SECURE" addressing the changes the SECURE Act had on retirement planning, and a program titled "Your Guide to Elder Law". Samantha has also been a speaker for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Tax Pro Seminars, Estate & Long Term Care Planning, Inc., and E,  DLF Publishing, Inc.

 
Additionally, Samantha co-authored a book with eighteen other leading elder care attorneys from across the nation titled "Protect Your Legacy! What You Really Need to Know for the Second Half of Life". Samantha co-authored the 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2022 supplements to the Pennsylvania Trust Guide (Editions IV and V) published by George T. Bisel Company, Co., Inc.

Jenna L. Franks, Esq.:

Jenna is a Partner at Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak, licensed to practice law in both Pennsylvania and Florida. She practices out of the firm's State College location and her team's main focus is dementia care planning. Jenna's team also assists with estate planning and long-term care planning. Jenna is a Certified Dementia Practitioner and is certified as a VA-accredited attorney. She was named a Super Lawyer Rising Star in 2020. 2021, and 2022. In addition, Jenna co-authored the book "Protect Your Family! What You Really Need to Know for the Second Half of Life".