Reformation of a North Carolina Trust Pursuant to N.C.G.S. 36C-4-415
Suppose that Mr. Smith created a trust during his lifetime that he intended to benefit his two daughters and his nephew at his death. When drafting the trust, Mr. Smith’s lawyer mistakenly omitted language naming the nephew as a beneficiary of the trust. After Mr. Smith’s death, the trustee administers the trust according to the terms of the document. Does Mr. Smith’s nephew have any means of recourse?
Historically, the nephew would have been unlikely to succeed in an action to recover his interest under the trust. However, since the codification of the North Carolina Uniform Trust Code, Mr. Smith’s nephew may be able to reform the terms of the trust to include the provision naming him as a beneficiary. N.C.G.S. 36C-4-415 provides that:
”[t]he court may reform the terms of a trust, even if unambiguous, to conform the terms to the settlor’s intention if it is proved by clear and convincing evidence that both the settlor’s intent and the terms of the trust were affected by a mistake of fact or law, whether in expression or inducement.”
The statute represents a substantial departure from the prior approach and provides aggrieved parties with a significant means of recourse: if the aggrieved party can prove by clear and convincing evidence that the person who created the trust intended to include a term but did not because of a mistake of fact or law, then a court may reform the terms of the trust to include that term. In the case of Mr. Smith’s nephew, he could petition the court to include him as a beneficiary of the trust in whatever amount the settlor intended.
As of this writing, no North Carolina appellate court has interpreted 36C-4-415, so it is unclear what its reach will ultimately be. It does, however, provide hope to intended beneficiaries mistakenly left out of trust documents.
Evan Lohr is an estates attorney with Lohr and Lohr PLLC in Raleigh. He can be reached at evan@lohrnc.com or at (919) 348-9211.
North Carolina Trusts and Estates Law 