A recent decision by the North Carolina Court of Appeals reinforced the distinction between claims over which the trial divisions have original jurisdiction and claims which are properly brought before the Clerk of Court.[1] In Morgan-McCoart v. Matchette, an elderly woman, Ms. Simpson, created a revocable trust and executed a Durable Power of Attorney in 2008. Her daughter, Julie, was named as her trustee and attorney-in-fact, and her other daughter, Claudia, was named as the alternate trustee and attorney-in-fact. Ms. Simpson was declared incompetent in 2009. Julie lived in California, making it difficult to fulfil her duties. Accordingly, Julia…
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Non-Conforming Payable on Death Accounts Can Survive as Common Law Tentative or “Totten” Trusts
On August 4, 2015, the North Carolina Court of Appeals issued a ruling clarifying that when a grantor seeks to create a statutory payable on death (“POD”) account, but fails to satisfy the statutory provisions, he/she can still rely on the existence of a common law tentative trust or “Totten” trust as an alternative.[1] The Totten trust, sometimes called a “poor man’s will,” was established after the 1904 New York Court of Appeals decision, In the Matter of Totten. The requirements to create a Totten trust are: (1) sufficient words to show intention to create…
