MSTR Cat

Trust Law/Level III · Family trusts/3.2 Trusts made by will/Lesson 7

Pet trusts

How US and English law let you set money aside for an animal’s care after you die, and the limits of each.

Education, not legal advice. Trust law changes from country to country and state to state, and the right structure depends on your situation. Anything you sign should be drafted or reviewed by a qualified lawyer where you live.

The lean path

The cheapest, lowest-tax, simplest and most private route the law allows, best first. Each step names the rule it rests on and the condition that keeps it lawful.

  1. Cheapest: leave the animal and a sum to a willing caregiver by will, with a written request about care. Catch: the request is usually not legally binding, so the caregiver owns both outright.
  2. A pet trust in a will costs little more and is valid in all 50 states and DC; under UTC §408 you can name an enforcer to watch the trustee. Catch: it ends when the animal dies, and covers only animals alive during your lifetime.
  3. Size the fund to real yearly costs times expected lifespan, and name who takes the remainder. Catch: under UTC §408 a court may cut an oversized fund, and excess otherwise goes to the settlor’s successors.
  4. In England and Wales, a trust for particular animals is valid only as an ‘imperfect obligation’ trust (Re Dean, 1889) within the perpetuity period, often 21 years. Catch: no one can force trustees to act, so a gift to a caregiver is often simpler.

MaterialsA list of your current pets and their specific dietary or medical needsYour state’s pet trust statute; in Uniform Trust Code states, its version of UTC §408 (free on state legislature websites)A draft will or trust document where the pet provision would be inserted

Wonder

  1. What happens to the money left in the trust if my dog dies early?
  2. Do I need a specific lawyer, or can I write this myself?
  3. Can I leave money directly to my neighbor with a note saying ‘please feed my cat’?

Explore

  1. In the US, all 50 states and the District of Columbia now have laws allowing a trust for the care of a pet; according to the ASPCA, Minnesota was the last to enact one, in 2016. Many follow the model Uniform Trust Code §408 (2000), which allows a trust ‘to provide for the care of an animal alive during the settlor’s lifetime.’ The animal is not a beneficiary in the usual sense; the statute makes an exception to the old rule that a private trust needs a person who can enforce it. Under §408 the trust ends when the animal dies, or the last of several animals. It can be set up during life or by will. Details, such as time limits, vary by state.
  2. An animal cannot go to court, so UTC §408 lets the trust be enforced by a person appointed in the trust’s terms or, if no one is named, by a person the court appoints. Anyone with an interest in the animal’s welfare may ask the court to appoint or remove that enforcer. Naming an enforcer is therefore not required for the trust to be valid under §408, but it means a known person is ready to watch the trustee from the start. Many people choose someone who knows the animal and is willing to ask about spending; the trustee and the caregiver may be different people.
  3. The trustee holds legal title to the money and manages it according to your instructions. The trustee typically makes regular payments to a named caregiver rather than handing over everything at once. This can help if the caregiver changes or dies, because the money stays with the trustee until it is spent on care. Under UTC §408, trust property may be applied only to its intended use: the animal’s care, such as food, veterinary bills and boarding, following the standard of care the document sets.
  4. Sizing the amount is an estimate. Some people add up the animal’s yearly costs for food, vet visits, insurance and boarding and multiply by its likely remaining lifespan; costs vary widely by animal and place. UTC §408 adds a limit: a court may decide that the trust holds more than its purpose needs. Unless the trust terms say otherwise, property not needed for the animal’s care goes to the settlor, if alive, otherwise to the settlor’s successors in interest, meaning the beneficiaries under the settlor’s will or, if none, the heirs. Many documents name who takes any remainder.
  5. England and Wales have no pet trust statute. A trust for the care of particular animals is one of a few old exceptions to the rule that a private trust needs a human beneficiary. In Re Dean (1889) the court upheld a will’s gift of £750 a year, for up to 50 years if the animals lived that long, to maintain the testator’s horses and hounds. These are called trusts of ‘imperfect obligation’: the trustees may carry them out, but no one can force them to, although those entitled to the leftover property can ask the court to stop misuse. They must not last beyond the perpetuity period, usually taken as 21 years, and in Re Endacott (1960) the Court of Appeal refused to extend these exceptions.
  6. A simpler alternative is to leave the animal and some money outright to a caregiver, with a written request to look after it. This costs less to set up, but such a request is usually not legally binding: once the gift is made, the caregiver owns the money and the animal and need not follow the request. A pet trust keeps the money separate and adds a trustee and an enforcer, at the price of more paperwork and cost. Which fits depends on the amount, the animal, the people involved and state law.

Key facts

  • All 50 US states and DC have pet trust laws; many follow Uniform Trust Code §408, which covers an animal alive during the settlor’s lifetime.
  • Under UTC §408, a person named in the trust may enforce it; if no one is named, the court may appoint someone.
  • Under UTC §408, unless the trust says otherwise, property not needed for the animal’s care goes to the settlor, if alive, or the settlor’s successors in interest.
  • In England and Wales, a trust for particular animals is valid only within limits as an ‘imperfect obligation’ trust: no one can force the trustees to act, and it must end within the perpetuity period.
  • In Re Dean (1889), an English court upheld a will’s provision for the upkeep of the testator’s horses and hounds.
  • A gift to a caregiver with a request for care is simpler, but the request is usually not legally binding.

Exercise nine, six, three, one

9CollectList up to 9 details about your animal’s care (some people have fewer), such as yearly food costs, routine vet visits, possible emergency costs, expected remaining lifespan, special diet or medicine, a preferred caregiver, a backup caregiver, a possible enforcer, and who should receive any leftover money.
6ClusterSort the details into 6 categories: current costs, future medical needs, caregivers, trust roles, funding, and leftover money.
3DistillReduce the 6 clusters to 3 core components of your pet trust plan: The Budget (total funds needed), The Guardians (trustee, enforcer, and caregiver), and The Exit Strategy (successor beneficiary for remaining assets).
1CrystallizeWrite 1 sentence naming who would hold the money, who would care for your animal, and who would check that the money is spent on its care.

Fact check

Dates, figures and claims checked against the published sources listed below.

Open in the interactive academy →

PT ES ZH JA KO RU DE FR MS