New Michigan Trust Code requires new court rules

By Roberta M. Gubbins Legal News Marlaine C. Teahan presented the Ingham County Probate Section members with an update on the new and modified Michigan Court Rules and SCAO Forms created to comply with the changes needed due to the adoption of the Michigan Trust Code (MTC) at their meeting held in April. "Under the MTC)," Teahan said, "trusts are not subject to court intervention unless someone brings the trust to the Court's attention, therefore, trust forms were deemed unnecessary, The SCAO (State Court Administration Office) forms committee decided not to create forms and attorneys can develop their own as needed." "There is only one form that is specifically updated to conform to MTC and designed for trusts. It is Registration of Trusts, form PC610. It is interesting to note that the term 'Testamentary Trust' is no longer used--it is now called the 'Trust created by the will of ____.' This form can be used if venue of the trust is an issue or the terms of the trust call for registration." Teahan noted that since the MTC is new, there are not a lot of trust forms out there that conform to the new laws. "That leaves us all to do our own hard work," she said. She noted that the May issue of the Michigan Bar Journal is all about the trust code. The governing principles of the MTC Rules Committee of the Probate and Estate Planning Council were to "1) preserve Michigan Law, 2) use as few words as possible and 3) don't add a court rule just because the MTC happens to place you in court." The only brand new rule is MCR 5.208 creating a new notice to creditors. This rule combines the old rules 5.306 and 5.503 for estates and trusts, which were deleted. E-mail when the parties agree in writing was added as a method of service under 5.105; the definition of interested persons was changed under 5.125 and rules 5.801 and 5.802 regarding appeals were modified. Teahan suggested the following resources to learn more about the MTC: --ICLE Seminars and online information: http://www.icle.org --Probate & Estate Planning Journal, Spring, 2009, The Michigan Trust Code --"Trust Administration under the Michigan Trust Code," ICLE --May, 2010, issue Michigan Bar Journal dedicated to Estate Planning with a focus on MTC. Passage of the MTC resulted in changes that may result in several SCAO forms needing conforming changes. Teahan noted that the SCAO will probably review the need for these changes in a year. She asked that suggested changes be sent to her at 517-377-0869 or mteahan@fraserlawfirm.com. Published: Thu, May 20, 2010

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