(a) Except as otherwise provided in the terms of the trust, this chapter governs the duties and powers of a trustee or any other fiduciary under this chapter, relations among trustees and such other fiduciaries, and the rights and interests of a beneficiary. The terms of a trust may expand, restrict, eliminate, or otherwise vary the duties and powers of a trustee, any such other fiduciary, relations among any of them, and the rights and interests of a beneficiary; provided, however, that nothing contained in this subsection (a) shall be construed to override or nullify the provisions of subsection (b). The rule of statutory construction that states that statutes in derogation of the common law are to be strictly construed shall have no application to this section. Except as restricted by subsection (b), pursuant to this section, courts shall give maximum effect to the principle of freedom of disposition and to the enforceability of trust instruments.
will 560x170

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.

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 35-15-105

  • Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
  • Beneficiary: means a person that has a present or future beneficial interest in a trust, vested or contingent. See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
  • Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
  • Fiduciary: means :
    (A) A trustee, conservator, guardian, agent under any agency agreement or other instrument, an executor, personal representative or administrator of a decedent's estate, or any other party, including a trust advisor or a trust protector, who is acting in a fiduciary capacity for any person, trust, or estate. See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Interests of the beneficiaries: means the beneficial interests provided in the terms of the trust. See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Person: means an individual. See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Reach: means , with respect to a distribution interest or any power held by anyone relative to a trust, to subject such distribution interest or such power to a judgment, decree, garnishment, attachment, execution, levy, creditor's bill or other legal, equitable, or administrative process, relief, or control of any court, tribunal, agency, or other entity that, by power of law, is provided with powers or jurisdiction similar to those described in this subdivision (25). See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Spendthrift provision: means a term of a trust which restrains both voluntary and involuntary transfer of a beneficiary's interest. See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Terms of a trust: means the manifestation of the settlor's intent regarding a trust's provisions as expressed in the trust instrument or as may be established by other evidence that would be admissible in a judicial proceeding. See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Trust instrument: means an instrument executed by the settlor that contains terms of the trust, including any amendments thereto. See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
  • Trustee: includes an original, additional, and successor trustee, and a cotrustee. See Tennessee Code 35-15-103
  • Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
(b) The terms of a trust prevail over any provision of this chapter except:

(1) The requirements for creating a trust;
(2) The duty of a trustee to act in accordance with the terms and purposes of the trust and the interests of the beneficiaries;
(3) The requirement that a trust and its terms be for the benefit of its beneficiaries as the interests of such beneficiaries are defined under the terms of the trust, and that the trust has a purpose that is lawful and possible to achieve;
(4) The power to modify or terminate a trust under §§ 35-15-410 – 35-15-416;
(5) The effect of a spendthrift provision and the rights of certain creditors and assignees to reach a trust as provided in part 5 of this chapter;
(6) The power of the court under § 35-15-702 to require, dispense with, or modify or terminate a bond;
(7) The power of the court under § 35-15-708(b) to adjust a trustee’s compensation specified in the terms of the trust which is unreasonably low or high;
(8) The effect of an exculpatory term under § 35-15-1008;
(9) The rights under §§ 35-15-1010 – 35-15-1013 of a person other than a trustee or beneficiary;
(10) Periods of limitation for commencing a judicial proceeding;
(11) The power of the court to take such action and exercise such jurisdiction as may be necessary in the interests of justice; and
(12) The subject matter jurisdiction of the court and venue for commencing a proceeding as provided in §§ 35-15-203 and 35-15-204.
(c) Any purpose enunciated as a material purpose of a trust in that trust’s trust instrument shall be treated as a material purpose of that trust for all purposes of this chapter and chapter 16.
  Previous section
Next section  
 Part 1 Contents