2017 Nebraska Revised Statutes
Chapter 30 - DECEDENTS' ESTATES; PROTECTION OF PERSONS AND PROPERTY
30-3882 (UTC 817) Distribution upon termination; medical assistance reimbursement claim; how treated.
30-3882. (UTC 817) Distribution upon termination; medical assistance reimbursement claim; how treated.
(UTC 817) (a) Except as limited in subsection (d) of this section, upon termination or partial termination of a trust, the trustee may send to the beneficiaries a proposal for distribution. The right of any beneficiary to object to the proposed distribution terminates if the beneficiary does not notify the trustee of an objection within thirty days after the proposal was sent but only if the proposal informed the beneficiary of the right to object and of the time allowed for objection.
(b) Except as limited in subsection (d) of this section, upon the occurrence of an event terminating or partially terminating a trust, the trustee shall proceed expeditiously to distribute the trust property to the persons entitled to it, subject to the right of the trustee to retain a reasonable reserve for the payment of debts, expenses, and taxes.
(c) A release by a beneficiary of a trustee from liability for breach of trust is invalid to the extent:
(1) it was induced by improper conduct of the trustee; or
(2) the beneficiary, at the time of the release, did not know of the beneficiary's rights or of the material facts relating to the breach.
(d) After the death of the trustor occurring after August 30, 2015, a trustee of a revocable trust which has become irrevocable by reason of the death of the trustor shall not transfer trust property to a beneficiary described in section 77-2004 or 77-2005 in relation to the trustor prior to satisfaction of all claims for medical assistance reimbursement pursuant to section 68-919 to the extent necessary to discharge any such claim remaining unpaid after application of the assets of the trustor's probate estate. The Department of Health and Human Services may, upon application of a trustee, waive the restriction on transfers established by this subsection in cases in which the department determines that either there is no medical assistance reimbursement due or after the proposed transfer is made there will be sufficient assets remaining in the trust or trustor's probate estate to satisfy all such claims for medical assistance reimbursement. If there is no medical assistance reimbursement due, the department shall waive the restriction within sixty days after receipt of the trustee's request for waiver and the deceased trustor's name and social security number and, if the trustor was predeceased by a spouse, the name and social security number of such spouse. A trustee who is a financial institution as defined in section 77-3801, a trust company chartered pursuant to the Nebraska Trust Company Act, or an attorney licensed to practice in this state may distribute assets from the trust prior to the receipt of the waiver from the department if the trustee signs a recital under oath that states the decedent's name and social security number and, if the decedent was predeceased by a spouse, the name and social security number of such spouse, and that the trustor was not a recipient of medical assistance and no claims for medical assistance exist under section 68-919. The trustee shall send such recital to the department. A trustee who makes such a recital knowing the recital is false becomes personally liable for medical assistance reimbursement pursuant to section 68-919 to the extent of the assets distributed from the trust necessary to discharge any such claim remaining unpaid after application of the assets of the transferor's probate estate. The request for waiver and the recital described in this subsection shall be provided to the department in a delivery manner and at an address designated by the department, which manner may include email. The department shall post the acceptable manner of delivery on its web site. Any request for waiver or recital that fails to conform with such manner is void.
Source
- Laws 2003, LB 130, § 82;
- Laws 2015, LB72, § 3;
- Laws 2017, LB268, § 6.
- Effective Date: August 24, 2017
Cross References
- Nebraska Trust Company Act, see section 8-201.01.
Annotations
Under this section, a trustee's duty to pay the settlor's debts, expenses, and taxes does not normally justify a trustee's failure to make distributions. An unduly delayed distribution is a breach of the duty of care unless the trustee shows that some realistic complication prevented the trustee from determining in a timely manner a reasonable sum to reserve for winding-up costs. In re Estate of Hedke, 278 Neb. 727, 775 N.W.2d 13 (2009).
