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Trust Decanting: Examples and Analysis


Product Code - TMW115
Speaker(s): Briani Bennett Mellen, Esq., Nexen Pruett, LLC
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All webinar registrants will receive a complimentary copy of Portfolio 871, Trust Decanting, of which Ms. Mellen is a coauthor. The Portfolio has a $400 value.

An increasing number of states are passing trust decanting statutes, and many practitioners regularly include trust decanting provisions in new trust agreements. Trust decanting generally refers to a trustee’s ability to distribute property from an irrevocable trust to another trust for the benefit of the original trust’s beneficiaries. Trust decanting provides the ability to update trust provisions, address changed circumstances of a trust or its beneficiaries, or engage in federal or estate tax planning.

This new practical webinar from Bloomberg BNA, Trust Decanting: Examples and Analysis, presented by Briani Bennett Mellen, discusses the broad range of planning opportunities for trust decanting and the unique tax implications raised with each example.

During this live webinar, Mellen will cover:

  • An introduction to decanting and the rationale supporting a trustee’s power to decant.
  • Decanting under common law as compared to state statutes.
  • Differences in decanting from trusts that are grandfathered for GST tax purposes and non-grandfathered trusts.
  • Extending the term of irrevocable trusts.
  • Gift tax issues related to a beneficiary’s consent or acquiescence to decanting.
  • Granting, modifying or eliminating powers of appointment.
  • Combination or division of trusts through decanting.
  • Decanting from trusts that limits distributions to an ascertainable standard.

Educational Objectives

  • Understand the mechanics of decanting pursuant to common law or state decanting statutes.
  • Analyze common scenarios for trust decanting and related estate, gift, GST or income tax implications.
  • Discuss the fiduciary obligations associated with a trustee’s exercise of the power to decant.

Who Should Attend?

  • Trust Officers
  • Estate, Gift and Tax Practitioners
  • State Tax Practitioners
  • Family Wealth Planners

Prerequisite: None
Level: Intermediate to Advanced
Delivery method: Group Interactive Live
Recommended CPE credit: 1.0 credits 

Briani Bennett Mellen, Esq., Nexen Pruett, LLC

Briani Bennett Mellen, J.D., LL.M. practices law in Columbia, South Carolina, at the law firm of Nexen Pruett, LLC, in the areas of estate and wealth transfer planning. Mrs. Mellen is a co-author of the Bloomberg BNA Tax Management Portfolio on Trust Decanting, No. 871. She has also co-authored several articles on trust decanting and trust administration for the Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Journal, Estate Planning, and Trusts & Estate magazine.