Heaps v. Heaps

Opinion

SILLS, P. J.—

I. INTRODUCTION

This case illustrates the sort of unexpected complications that can arise from the so-called living trusts, which are hawked so aggressively these days. The bottom line here is that the casual use of a living trust as a quickie estate planning device meant that a husband was worth a lot less than his second wife thought he was worth when she married him. Unbeknownst to her, the husband’s erstwhile assets had already been tied up for the first wife’s children because of an overly broad clause involving how the trust would hold title. As we explain below, the…