2012 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 45a - Probate Courts and Procedure
Chapter 802 - Fiduciaries
Section 45a-233 - (Formerly Sec. 45-100d). Construction of statutes in this part.

(a) Definitions. As used in sections 45a-233 to 45a-236, inclusive, (1) the term “fiduciary” means the one or more executors or administrators c.t.a. or administrators c.t.a., d.b.n. of the estate of a decedent, or the one or more trustees of a testamentary or inter vivos trust estate, or any successor or successors to the original fiduciary, or any substitute, or any ancillary fiduciary, whether corporate or individual and whether or not specifically named in the will or trust instrument, and includes the terms “cofiduciary”, “coexecutor” and “cotrustee”. (2) The term “settlor” means the creator of an inter vivos trust, whether called “settlor”, “grantor”, “donor”, or “trustor” in the instrument. (3) The terms “will” and “trust instrument” include, respectively, codicils to a will and amendments to a trust as the context may require. (4) “QTIP” means qualified terminable interest property as defined under Section 2056(b)(7)(B) of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as from time to time amended.

(b) Use of terminology. In all cases, the singular includes the plural of said terms and vice versa. Reference to any person by use of the neuter term “it” includes masculine and feminine and vice versa.

(c) Incorporation of certain powers by reference in will or trust instrument. By an expressed intention of the testator or settlor so to do contained in a will or in an instrument in writing whereby a trust estate is created inter vivos, any one or more or all of the powers or any portion thereof enumerated in section 45a-234, as they exist at the time of the signing of a will by the testator or at the time of the signing by the first settlor who signs a trust instrument, may be, by appropriate reference made thereto, incorporated in such will or other instrument, with the same effect as though such language were set forth verbatim in such will or other instrument. If a codicil or amendment to a trust instrument has been executed, the incorporated powers contained in such will or other instrument shall remain unchanged unless modified or otherwise altered by such codicil or amendment. Incorporation of one or more or all of the powers contained in said section by reference to said section shall be in addition to and not in limitation of other powers in the will or other instrument and of the common law powers or other statutory powers of the fiduciary. Any one or more or all of the additional powers or any portions thereof enumerated in section 45a-235 also may be incorporated by reference as therein provided but only to the extent they are individually referred to in such will or other instrument. In the event of a conflict between one or more of the powers contained in sections 45a-234 and 45a-235 and the express terms of the will or other instrument, the terms of such will or other instrument shall govern. In the event of a conflict between one or more of the powers contained in sections 45a-234 and 45a-235, and any other provision of the general statutes, the power or powers contained in sections 45a-234 and 45a-235 shall govern.

(d) Limitation of power. No discretionary power or authority conferred upon a fiduciary as provided in sections 45a-233 to 45a-236, inclusive, may be exercised by such fiduciary in such a manner as, in the aggregate, to deprive the trust or the estate involved of an otherwise available tax exemption, deduction or credit, expressly including the marital and orphans deductions and the deduction for transfers for public, charitable and religious uses, except as otherwise prescribed by the testator or settlor, or operate to attract or impose a tax upon a settlor or estate of a testator or upon any other person as owner of any portion of the trust or estate involved. Notwithstanding any provisions contained in or incorporated by reference into a will or trust instrument, no person shall have a power to make any equitable adjustments affecting any qualified terminable interest property or a QTIP trust. For the purposes of this subsection, “equitable adjustments” means adjustments to trust corpus or income or both which involve a reallocation of assets from the account of one beneficiary to that of another to compensate for disproportionate sharing of a tax burden resulting from a tax election. The exercise of a power in violation of the restriction contained in this subsection shall render the action by the fiduciary or any other person with regard to that violation void. “Tax” means a federal, state, whether that of Connecticut, another state or territory of the United States, the District of Columbia or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, local, municipal or foreign, whether national, provincial, state, local or municipal, income, gift, estate, generation-skipping, inheritance, succession, accessions or other death tax, duty or excise imposed on the transfer of property at death or by gift. “Marital deduction” and “deduction for transfers for public, charitable and religious uses”, shall have the same meaning and application as shall exist under the federal Internal Revenue Code in effect at the death of the testator or at the time a trust becomes irrevocable, as the case may be. The definition of tax in this subsection shall be deemed to be the definition as it existed in this subsection on and after January 1, 1970, and in subsection (b) of section 45-100a insofar as said section 45-100a applies to any instrument in which it was incorporated from January 1, 1967, to December 31, 1969, inclusive.

(e) Construction of other types of instruments. Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent the incorporation of the powers enumerated in section 45a-234 or 45a-235 in any other kind of instrument or agreement.

(1969, P.A. 827, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 556, S. 1; P.A. 80-410, S. 7, 21; 80-476, S. 204; P.A. 83-520, S. 1; P.A. 89-211, S. 47.)

History: 1971 act redefined “fiduciary” to specifically include cofiduciaries, coexecutors and cotrustees and added provision re gender and number of terms and pronouns referring to them; P.A. 80-410 amended Subsec. (a) to specify that in event of conflict with other state law Secs. 45-100e and 45-100f govern, amended Subsec. (b) to specify that will codicils and trust amendments are included in meaning of “will” and “trust instrument” and amended Subsec. (c) to include orphans deductions, to redefine “tax” and to delete provision specifying inclusion of codicils and trust amendments as “wills” and “trust instruments”; P.A. 80-476 reorganized provisions, redesignating Subsecs., and reworded provisions; P.A. 83-520 amended Subsec. (a) by adding definition of “QTIP” and added provision in Subsec. (d) prohibiting person from making any equitable adjustments affecting any qualified terminable interest property or a QTIP trust; P.A. 89-211 clarified reference to the Internal Revenue Code; Sec. 45-100d transferred to Sec. 45a-233 in 1991.

Cited. 166 C. 21. Cited. 178 C. 42. Cited. 202 C. 57.

Subsec. (c):

Former statute cited. 157 C. 278.

Annotation to present section:

Subsec. (c):

Subsec. acknowledges right of a testator to give an executor the power to sell property without the supervision or permission of a court, and such authority is not conditioned on approval of decedent’s beneficiaries. 292 C. 696.