2018 New York Laws
EPT - Estates, Powers and Trusts
Article 13 - Other Provisions Affecting Estates
Part 3 - Miscellaneous Provisions
13-3.3 - Designation of Trustee to Receive Proceeds of Thrift, Savings, Pension, Retirement, Death Benefit, Stock Bonus and Profit-Sharing Plans, Systems or Tr

§ 13-3.3 Designation  of trustee to receive proceeds of thrift, savings,
         pension,  retirement,  death   benefit,   stock   bonus   and
         profit-sharing plans, systems or trusts, of life, group life,
         industrial life or accident and health insurance policies and
         of  annuity,  endowment and supplemental insurance contracts,
         and taxation thereof
(a) The  proceeds  of  thrift,  savings,  pension,  retirement,  death
  benefit,  stock  bonus  and  profit-sharing plans, systems or trusts, of
  life, group life, industrial  life  or  accident  and  health  insurance
  policies  and of annuity, endowment and supplemental insurance contracts
  (hereinafter referred to as "proceeds") may be made payable to a trustee
  designated as beneficiary in the manner prescribed by this  section  and
  named as:
(1)  Trustee  under  a  trust  agreement  or  declaration  of trust in
  existence at the date  of  such  designation,  and  identified  in  such
  designation, and such proceeds shall be paid to such trustee and be held
  and  disposed of in accordance with the terms of such trust agreement or
  declaration of trust, including any amendments thereto, as  they  appear
  in  writing  on  the  date  of  the  death  of  the insured, employee or
  participant. It shall not be necessary to the validity of any such trust
  agreement or declaration of trust that it have a trust corpus other than
  the right of the trustee as beneficiary to receive such proceeds.
(2)  Trustee  of  a  trust  to  be  established  by  will,  and   upon
  qualification and issuance of letters of trusteeship such proceeds shall
  be  payable to the trustee to be held and disposed of in accordance with
  the terms of such will as a testamentary trust. A designation  which  in
  substance  names  as  such beneficiary the trustee under the will of the
  insured, employee or participant, shall be taken to refer to the will of
  such person actually admitted to probate,  whether  executed  before  or
  after the making of such designation.
(b)  If  no qualified trustee claims such proceeds from the insurer or
  other payor within eighteen months  after  the  death  of  the  insured,
  employee or participant, or if satisfactory evidence is furnished to the
  insurer  or other payor within such period showing that there is or will
  be no trustee to receive such proceeds, such proceeds shall be  paid  by
  the  insurer or other payor to the personal representative or assigns of
  the insured, employee  or  participant,  unless  otherwise  provided  by
  agreement  with  the  insurer  or other payor during the lifetime of the
  insured, employee or participant.
(c) Except to the extent otherwise provided by  the  trust  agreement,
  declaration of trust or will, proceeds received by the trustee shall not
  be  subject to the debts of the insured, employee or participant, to any
  greater extent than if such proceeds were payable to  the  beneficiaries
  named  in  the  trust, and for all purposes including transfer or estate
  tax purposes they shall not be deemed payable to or for the  benefit  of
  the estate of the insured, employee or participant.
(d)  Proceeds so held in trust may be commingled with any other assets
  which may properly become part of such trust.
(e)  Nothing  in  this  section  shall  effect  the  validity  of  any
  designation  heretofore  made  of  the  trustee of any trust established
  under a trust agreement or declaration of trust or by will.
(f) This section shall be construed as declaring the law as it existed
  prior to its enactment and not as modifying it.