Trust Transfers
Successor Trustee
CCT does not serve as successor trustee of any standalone trust or estate but will accept transferred or decanted assets from other trusts, subject to the guidelines below.
Successor/Contingent Beneficiaries when Transferring or Decanting
When completing the Joinder Agreement, the Successor Beneficiaries (and Contingent Beneficiaries, if applicable) should match the original trust, unless stated otherwise in the trust or authorized by court order. Please fill in “see addendum” in the line for Successor A in the Joinder Agreement, and then attach the remainder beneficiary section from the current trust as an addendum to the Joinder Agreement (and initial it in the right lower corner of that page). However, before signing the Joinder Agreement, please submit the current trust and the addendum to CCT for review to ensure that the current trust’s remainder terms are in keeping with the CCT Master Trust Agreement. contact@trustCCT.org
Assets
CCT pooled trust sub-accounts can only accept liquidated assets, except for inherited individual retirement accounts (IRAs) held by standalone third-party special needs trusts. So, the trustee of the original trust will need to liquidate all investments and other holdings prior to transferring the funds to CCT via cash or electronic funds transfer (EFT). Further, CCT cannot accept the transfer of real or personal property.
When Can CCT Accept a Transfer of Assets from Another Trust
(Click Applicable Option Below)
1. Original Trust Authorizes Transfer
If the language in an existing trust authorizes the trustee to make distributions to another trust with similar provisions (whether a special needs trust or settlement preservation trust) CCT can accept the transfer.
An example of language that would allow this is:
My Trustee may at any time, exercising sole discretion, distribute any income or principal held in [name of trust], up to the entire value of the trust corpus, to the Trustee of the Commonwealth Community Trust [Third OR First-Party Pooled Special Needs Trust OR Settlement Preservation Pooled Trust] for the benefit of [insert Beneficiary name] or a similar pooled trust. I authorize my Trustee to sign all joinders and other documents and take all steps necessary to establish the sub-account and to facilitate the transfer of the trust assets to the sub-account for the benefit of [insert Beneficiary name].
In addition, if I have not previously completed the joinder agreement with the pooled trust, then my Trustee shall name [insert persons individually or per stirpes, trusts, or charities] as the remainder beneficiaries of the sub-account. [OR INSERT CUSTOM STATEMENT OF DISTRIBUTION]
If you are considering transferring trust assets to CCT, please start by contacting CCT and send a copy of the original trust document.
contact@trustCCT.org
2. Decanting
Trust assets, whether special needs trusts or settlement preservation trusts, can be transferred to the corollary CCT pooled trust if the original trust (and the state law where it is sitused) permits decanting. Some states have enacted the Uniform Decanting Act and some have enacted their own decanting act.
When decanting, the following are some details to consider:
a. Who is Grantor of Original Trust?
b. Who is current Trustee?
c. Who is the Beneficiary?
d. What is the date of the Original Trust?
e. What are the remainder terms after Beneficiary dies?
f. Which state’s law governs trust? Does it permit decanting?
g. Is there accounting to the court or other entity?
h. Does Original Trust prohibit or limit decanting?
i. Does Original Trust specify compensation?
j. Does Original Trust have a different liability requirement?
k. Was notice given?
i. Does the notice include all statutorily required information (including method of decanting and proposed effective date)?
ii. Does the notice include the intent to include any later discovered property?
iii. Were statutorily required documents included with the notice (original trust, new trust, Joinder Agreement)?
iv. Was notice sent to all statutorily required parties?
l. Has the required time expired or was the time requirement waived by the parties who received notice?
m. Is it prudent to petition the court to approve the decanting?
When referring to CCT for the purposes of transferring assets via decanting, the documents should say that the assets should be transferred to:
First-party pooled special needs trust: Capital First Trust Company, Trustee, or its successors, of the Commonwealth Community Trust First-Party Pooled Special Needs Trust for the benefit of [BENEFICIARY NAME].
Third-party pooled special needs trust: Capital First Trust Company, Trustee, or its successors, of the Commonwealth Community Trust Third-Party Pooled Special Needs Trust for the benefit of [BENEFICIARY NAME].
Settlement preservation pooled trust: Capital First Trust Company, Trustee, or its successors, of the Commonwealth Community Trust Settlement Preservation Pooled Trust for the benefit of [BENEFICIARY NAME].
If you are considering transferring trust assets to CCT, please start by contacting CCT and send a copy of the original trust document. contact@trustCCT.org
3. Court Order
When the original trust does not explicitly permit transfer and decanting is not permitted or appropriate, then the court can be petitioned to authorize the transfer of trust assets to the appropriate CCT pooled trust.
When submitting the petition, we recommend that you include the CCT Master Trust Agreement and the CCT Joinder Agreement. The Master Trust Agreement and Joinder Agreement can be found at the top of each trust’s webpage: First-Party PSNT, Third-Party PSNT, and Settlement Preservation. If the Joinder Agreement submitted has not been completed, then it is recommended that remainder beneficiaries be specified in the court order.
When referring to CCT for the purposes of transferring assets via decanting, the documents should say that the assets should be transferred to:
First-party pooled special needs trust: Capital First Trust Company, Trustee, or its successors, of the Commonwealth Community Trust First-Party Pooled Special Needs Trust for the benefit of [BENEFICIARY NAME].
Third-party pooled special needs trust: Capital First Trust Company, Trustee, or its successors, of the Commonwealth Community Trust Third-Party Pooled Special Needs Trust for the benefit of [BENEFICIARY NAME].
Settlement preservation pooled trust: Capital First Trust Company, Trustee, or its successors, of the Commonwealth Community Trust Settlement Preservation Pooled Trust for the benefit of [BENEFICIARY NAME].
If you are considering transferring trust assets to CCT via court order, please start by contacting CCT and send a copy of the original trust document, a copy of the draft petition to the court, and a copy of the draft court order authorizing the transfer. contact@trustCCT.org
This information is meant for educational purposes only and it is not legal advice. For legal advice, please consult an attorney.
*Disclaimer Statement: CCT is not a chartered bank or trust company, or depository institution. It is not authorized to accept deposits or trust accounts and is not licensed or regulated by any state or federal banking authority.