Trusts: Beneficiary, Qualified Beneficiary, Interested Person

In trust litigation, particularly breach of trust litigation, your legal relation to the trust is extremely important in determining what claims you can make. Missouri trust law distinguishes between a “qualified beneficiary,” “beneficiary” and “interested person.”

By way of example, a qualified beneficiary is typically either someone who is eligible to receive mandatory or discretionary distributions from the trust or would be eligible to receive mandatory or discretionary distributions if another person’s interests in the trust terminated. Section 456.1-103(21), RSMo. A qualified beneficiary may request that a trustee be removed, whereas an “interested person” or mere “beneficiary” may not. Section 456.7-706, RSMo.

An “interested person” includes beneficiaries and “others having a property right in or claim against a trust which may be affected by a judicial proceeding.” Section 456.1-103(11), RSMo. These individuals typically have less rights and less legal standing to bring claims pertaining to a trust’s administration.

Contact.

Related Articles

Will Contests, Self-Proving Wills

March 30, 2023

Will contests are unique for several reasons. Perhaps most significantly, the burden is on the proponent of the document to prove the will was executed and that the testator possessed the requisite capacity. Many times the “proponent” of the will is the defendant in the lawsuit. So, the will contest instructions contemplate the defendant presenting…

Read More

Trustee Abuse of Discretion Factors

October 30, 2022

Increasingly, trust instruments grant trustees “discretion” to do certain acts. Drafters include this language to account for unanticipated circumstances and make a trustee’s life easier. But even where a trustee has discretion, they can act improperly. “A grant of absolute discretion to a trustee is not a roving commission – the trustee must be guided…

Read More

Probate Exception to Federal Jurisdiction

September 9, 2022

There are two main ways for a lawsuit to end up in federal court. First, if the lawsuit “arises under” federal law. This is sometimes called federal question jurisdiction. Second, if there is diversity jurisdiction. There are, in turn, two main requirements for diversity jurisdiction: the amount in controversy must exceed $75,000 and all of…

Read More

Trust Language: “Necessary or Advisable” Distributions

March 4, 2022

The language of a trust is extremely important. And when a will, trust, and other estate documents form part of the same plan, they are interpreted together. Indeed, “[w]hen a trust and will form parts of the same plan, they must be construed together.” Shriners Hospital for Children v. Schaper, 215 S.W.3d 185, 189-90 (Mo….

Read More
Scroll to Top