(1) “Adult” means any person eighteen (18) years of age or older.

Ask a will, trust or estate question, get an answer ASAP!
Thousands of highly rated, verified estate & trust lawyers.
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

(3) “Beneficiary” has the meaning set forth in IC 30-2-14-2.

(4) “Breach of trust” means a violation by the trustee of any duty which is owed to the settlor or beneficiary.

(5) “Charitable trust” means a trust in which all the beneficiaries are the general public or organizations, including trusts, corporations, and associations, and that is organized and operated wholly for religious, charitable, scientific, public safety testing, literary, or educational purposes. The term does not include charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, pooled income funds, or any other form of split-interest charitable trust that has at least one (1) noncharitable beneficiary.

(6) “Court” means a court having jurisdiction over trust matters.

(7) “Child” includes an adopted child or a child that is in gestation before the death of a deceased parent and born within forty-three (43) weeks after the death of that parent. The term does not include a grandchild or other more remote descendants, nor, except as provided in IC 29-1-2-7, a child born out of wedlock.

(8) “Designated representative” means a person who:

(A) is authorized, under the terms of a trust, to represent the interests of a beneficiary;

(B) delivers to the trustee a written acceptance of appointment as the designated representative; and

(C) is appointed or assigned to act and communicate on behalf of that beneficiary in one (1) or more of the following ways:

(i) The person is expressly appointed by the settlor, in the trust instrument or under a power reserved by the settlor, to act as a designated representative for one (1) or more beneficiaries of a trust.

(ii) The person is appointed as a designated representative by the trustee or by another authorized person under procedures provided in the trust instrument or described under this subdivision.

(iii) The person is authorized or directed under the trust instrument to represent or bind one (1) or more beneficiaries in connection with a judicial proceeding or nonjudicial matter.

(iv) The person is appointed by a beneficiary to act as a designated representative of that beneficiary.

Notwithstanding any contrary provision in the trust instrument or in any other writing that appoints a designated representative, a designated representative is a fiduciary and has a duty to act in good faith in representing the best interests of the beneficiary being represented, and to refrain from willful misconduct.

(9) “Income”, except as otherwise stated in a trust agreement, has the meaning set forth in IC 30-2-14-4.

(10) “Income beneficiary” has the meaning set forth in IC 30-2-14-5.

(11) “Inventory value” means the cost of property to the settlor or the trustee at the time of acquisition or the market value of the property at the time it is delivered to the trustee, or the value of the property as finally determined for purposes of an estate or inheritance tax.

(12) “Judicial proceeding” means a proceeding involving a trust before a court having subject matter jurisdiction of the trust, whether or not the administration of the trust is governed by Indiana law.

(13) “Minor” means any person under the age of eighteen (18) years.

(14) “No contest provision” refers to a provision of a trust instrument that, if given effect, would reduce or eliminate the interest of a beneficiary of the trust who, directly or indirectly, initiates or otherwise pursues:

(A) an action to contest the validity of:

(i) the trust; or

(ii) the terms of the trust;

(B) an action to set aside or vary any term of the trust; or

(C) any other act to frustrate or defeat the settlor’s intent as expressed in the terms of the trust.

(15) “Nonjudicial matter” includes but is not limited to any of the following matters or actions relating to a trust or its administration:

(A) A trustee’s provision of accounting statements or notices to beneficiaries under IC 30-2-14, IC 30-2-15, or this article.

(B) The solicitation, execution, and delivery of waivers of notice, consent, or objections from beneficiaries under IC 30-2-14, IC 30-2-15, or this article.

(C) The solicitation, execution, and delivery of a consent, acquiescence, ratification, release, or discharge by a beneficiary under IC 30-4-3-19.

(16) “Person” has the meaning set forth in IC 30-2-14-9.

(17) “Personal representative” means an executor or administrator of a decedent‘s or absentee’s estate, guardian of the person or estate, guardian ad litem or other court appointed representative, next friend, parent or custodian of a minor, attorney in fact, or custodian of an incapacitated person (as defined in IC 29-3-1-7.5).

(18) “Principal” has the meaning set forth in IC 30-2-14-10.

(19) “Qualified beneficiary” means:

(A) a beneficiary who, on the date the beneficiary’s qualification is determined:

(i) is a distributee or permissible distributee of trust income or principal;

(ii) would be a distributee or permissible distributee of trust income or principal if the interest of the distributee described in item (i) terminated on that date;

(iii) would be a distributee or permissible distributee of trust income or principal if the trust terminated on that date;

(iv) is a charitable organization expressly designated to receive distributions under the terms of a charitable trust;

(v) is a person appointed to enforce a trust for the care of an animal under IC 30-4-2-18; or

(vi) is a person appointed to enforce a trust for a noncharitable purpose under IC 30-4-2-19; or

(B) the attorney general, if the trust is a charitable trust having its principal place of administration in Indiana.

(20) “Remainderman” means a beneficiary entitled to principal, including income which has been accumulated and added to the principal.

(21) “Settlor” means a person who establishes a trust including the testator of a will under which a trust is created.

(22) “Terms of a trust”, “terms of the trust”, or “terms of a charitable trust” means the manifestation of the intent of a settlor or decedent with respect to the trust, expressed in a manner that admits of its proof in a judicial proceeding, whether by written or spoken words or by conduct.

(23) “Trust estate” means the trust property and the income derived from its use.

(24) “Trust for a benevolent public purpose” means a charitable trust (as defined in subdivision (5)), a split-interest trust (as defined in Section 4947 of the Internal Revenue Code), a perpetual care fund established under IC 23-14-48-2, a prepaid funeral plan or funeral trust established under IC 30-2-9, a funeral trust established under IC 30-2-10, a trust or an escrow account created from payments of funeral, burial services, or merchandise in advance of need described in IC 30-2-13, and any other form of split-interest charitable trust that has both charitable and noncharitable beneficiaries, including but not limited to charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, and charitable pooled income funds.

(25) “Trust instrument” means an instrument, agreement, or other written document executed by the settlor that contains the terms of the trust, including any amendments to the terms of the trust.

(26) “Trust property” means property either placed in trust or purchased or otherwise acquired by the trustee for the trust regardless of whether the trust property is titled in the name of the trustee or the name of the trust.

(27) “Trustee” has the meaning set forth in IC 30-2-14-13.

Formerly: Acts 1971, P.L.416, SEC.2; Acts 1973, P.L.293, SEC.5. As amended by P.L.33-1989, SEC.94; P.L.138-1994, SEC.1; P.L.41-2000, SEC.2; P.L.84-2002, SEC.3; P.L.238-2005, SEC.19; P.L.61-2008, SEC.13; P.L.51-2014, SEC.18; P.L.163-2018, SEC.13; P.L.33-2019, SEC.13; P.L.221-2019, SEC.1; P.L.231-2019, SEC.21.