Estate of Rosenberg v. Department of Public Welfare

OPINION OF THE COURT

FLAHERTY, Justice.

This case involves the interpretation of a testamentary trust, presenting the question of whether a trustee had discretion to preserve the principal of the trust for the benefit of remaindermen rather than to expend it for the sole life beneficiary, when the latter course would, arguably, benefit only the Department of Public Welfare. The department held that the trustee had no discretion to preserve the trust assets; rather, the assets were a resource available to the life beneficiary, making her ineligible for medical assistance benefits. The…