The U.S. Supreme Court and the Law of Trusts and Estates: A Law Reformer's Perspective

42 ACTEC Law Journal 11 (2016)

U Iowa Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2017-14

7 Pages Posted: 16 Feb 2017 Last revised: 25 Mar 2017

See all articles by Thomas P. Gallanis

Thomas P. Gallanis

George Mason University - Antonin Scalia Law School

Date Written: March 2017

Abstract

This brief essay was commissioned by the ACTEC Law Journal for a symposium issue on The Supreme Court's Estate Planning Jurisprudence. The essay examines the relationship between recent decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court and the law of trusts and estates. The essay does so from the perspective of a law reformer active in the American Law Institute and the Uniform Law Commission. The views expressed in the essay, however, are solely the author's.

The essay focuses on one of the most significant projects of trusts and estates law reform in recent decades: the harmonization of the default rules governing probate and nonprobate transfers. What impact has the U.S. Supreme Court had on this important project? The answer is not salutary. Indeed, the essay argues that recent decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court frustrate the decedent's intention and also frustrate the harmonization of the intent-effectuating rules governing probate and nonprobate transfers.

Keywords: trusts, estates, succession, Supreme Court, federal law, state law, wills, will substitutes, nonprobate transfers, default rules

JEL Classification: K11, K36

Suggested Citation

Gallanis, Thomas P., The U.S. Supreme Court and the Law of Trusts and Estates: A Law Reformer's Perspective (March 2017). 42 ACTEC Law Journal 11 (2016), U Iowa Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2017-14, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2918959

Thomas P. Gallanis (Contact Author)

George Mason University - Antonin Scalia Law School ( email )

3301 Fairfax Drive
Arlington, VA 22201
United States

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