Uniform Trust Code, Powers of Appointment, and Uniform Probate Code provisions modifications
SF571 makes a broad set of changes to Minnesota’s trust, powers of appointment, and probate statutes. A major policy change is the amendment to Minnesota’s rule against perpetuities for certain trusts created on or after August 1, 2025: instead of the prior 90-year limit, the bill generally allows nonvested interests and powers of appointment in those trusts to remain valid for up to 500 years unless the trust requires a shorter vesting period. The bill also updates rules on trust modification and termination, trust revocation, trustee acceptance and resignation, representation of beneficiaries, certificates and affidavits used in trust transactions, and the treatment of revocable trusts in estate administration.
The bill also expands and clarifies Minnesota’s decanting statute, which allows trustees to move assets from one irrevocable trust into another under specified conditions. It revises definitions, notice requirements, permissible terms of the new trust, and limits on what decanting can change, including protections for mandatory distributions, tax benefits, S corporation status, and trustee compensation. In addition, it modernizes provisions governing directed trusts by defining and regulating investment trust advisors, distribution trust advisors, trust protectors, and excluded fiduciaries, including their powers, duties, liability limits, and information-sharing obligations.
Beyond trust administration, SF571 makes conforming and technical changes in probate law. It expands the circumstances under which a parent is barred from inheriting from or through a child, including a new rule for estranged parents when an adult child dies. It also updates the revocation-upon-divorce statute to clarify how dissolution affects revocable dispositions, powers of appointment, and fiduciary nominations, while preserving exceptions for certain governing instruments and retirement plans.
The overall sentiment around the bill appears strongly favorable and noncontroversial. It passed the Senate 63-0, the House 134-0, and then the Senate repassed it 61-0 after a House amendment, indicating broad bipartisan support and little recorded opposition. The lack of committee transcript material suggests there was no notable public debate captured in the available record.
The main points of potential contention, based on the substance of the bill rather than recorded opposition, are the very long 500-year perpetuities period for new trusts, the expanded authority of trust protectors and directing parties, and the increased flexibility for decanting and trust modification. Those changes can affect beneficiaries’ rights, trustee oversight, and tax planning, but the bill’s text also includes multiple safeguards, notice requirements, and limits intended to preserve existing interests and tax treatment.
SF571 amends multiple sections of Minnesota Statutes chapters 501A, 501C, 502, and 524, changing default trust-law rules for future trusts, directed trusts, decanting, trust modification, and probate administration. It affects settlors, trustees, beneficiaries, fiduciaries, and estate planners by expanding permissible trust duration, clarifying who may act for beneficiaries, adjusting trustee and advisor duties and liabilities, and revising procedures for trust transactions and post-death administration. The bill is largely technical and conforming in nature, but it also makes substantive changes to the rule against perpetuities and to the flexibility of trust administration.
The bill’s reception was overwhelmingly positive. It passed both chambers unanimously, with no recorded dissenting votes, suggesting broad agreement that the changes were useful, clarifying, or aligned with modern trust and estate practice. No committee transcript was provided, so there is no documented floor or committee debate in the available materials.
No formal opposition is reflected in the voting record, but the bill’s most consequential policy choices could draw scrutiny in other settings: extending the allowable duration of certain trusts to 500 years, broadening the powers of trust protectors and distribution/investment advisors, and expanding decanting authority. These provisions can shift control away from traditional trustee discretion and may affect beneficiary protections, tax consequences, and long-term wealth planning. The bill attempts to address those concerns through notice, objection, fiduciary-duty, and tax-preservation provisions.