Article On Unusual Property Divisions Involving Trusts

Marc A. Chorney (Chorney & Millard LLP) recently published an article entitled, Pfannenstiehl v. Pfannenstiehl: Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Grants Petition for Certiorari in Unusual Property Division Involving Trust Interest. Provided below is an abstract of the article:

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently granted a petition for certiorari in a case where the value of a beneficiary’s interest in a third party settled multi-generational trust was included in the marital estate for purposes of a property division at divorce. This article examines that the opinion of the Appeals Court of Massachusetts and maintains that the lower court’s method of analysis was incorrect in determining that the interest was includable as divisible property.