Article on Democracy and Trusts

Carla Spivack recently published an Article entitled, Democracy and Trusts, 42 ACTEC Law Journal 311 (2017). Provided below is an abstract of the Article:

Historically, trusts have evaded the NC [numerus clausus] filter for highly formalistic reasons: the trust form separates legal from equitable title, and traditionally, NC has applied only to forms of legal title, ignoring all of the myriad equitable interest trusts create. As I explain below, this distinction makes little sense. I argue that the NC should apply to the beneficial interests of trusts just as it applies to other property forms. Bringing equitable interests into the NC analysis would change the legal landscape of trust law and force a much more rational discussion of the role that trusts play in our society and our estate planning.