Article: Designing Long-Term Trusts to Hold Art and Collectibles

Michael Duffy published an Article titled, Designing Long-Term Trusts to Hold Art and Collectibles, ABA Probate & Property (July/August 2023). Provided below is the introduction:

Modern estate plans in the United States, especially among the very wealthy, often involve the creation of long-term irrevocable trusts to hold assets for current and future beneficiaries. Among their many benefits, such trusts can keep trust assets out of the beneficiaries’ taxable estates and also protect them from their judgment creditors.

In the United States, wealth transfer planning using trusts has become so ubiquitous among wealthy families that heirs face the reality of not inheriting assets directly anymore, but rather inheriting trust structures that hold assets for them. Occasionally, such trusts are funded with tangible personal property like fine art and collectibles. These assets present unique challenges for trustees to manage, especially in light of a trustee’s duties to exercise prudence and loyalty.

This article will highlight key administrative provisions that might be appropriate to include when designing irrevocable trusts to hold and manage art and collectibles over multiple generations.

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/trusts_estates_prof/2023/08/article-designing-long-term-trusts-to-hold-art-and-collectibles.html