Title 700, ESTATES AND PROTECTED INDIVIDUALS CODE

Sec. 7415. The court may reform the terms of a trust, even if unambiguous, to conform the terms to the settlor's intention if it is proved by clear and convincing evidence that both the settlor's intent and the terms of the trust were affected by a mistake of fact or law, whether…

Sec. 7416. To achieve the settlor's tax objectives, the court may modify the terms of a trust in a manner that is not contrary to the settlor's probable intention. The court may provide that the modification has retroactive effect.

Sec. 7417. (1) After notice to the qualified trust beneficiaries and to the holders of powers of appointment, a trustee may divide trust property into 2 or more separate portions or trusts and allocate property between them if the trusts have substantially identical terms and con…

Sec. 7501. This part applies to a creditor's or transferee's claims with respect to spendthrift, support, and discretionary trusts.

Sec. 7502. (1) A spendthrift provision is valid and enforceable. (2) A term of a trust providing that the interest of a trust beneficiary is held subject to a "spendthrift trust," or words of similar import, restrains both voluntary and involuntary transfer of the trust beneficia…

Sec. 7503. (1) The interest of a trust beneficiary that is subject to a support provision may not be transferred and the trust property is not subject to the enforcement of a judgment until income or principal, or both, is distributed directly to the trust beneficiary. After a di…

Sec. 7504. (1) The interest of a trust beneficiary that is subject to a spendthrift provision, a support provision, or both may be reached in satisfaction of an enforceable claim against the trust beneficiary by any of the following: (a) A trust beneficiary's child or former spou…

Sec. 7505. The transferee or creditor of the beneficiary of a discretionary trust provision does not have a right to any amount of trust income or principal that may be distributed only in the exercise of the trustee's discretion, and trust property is not subject to the enforcem…

Sec. 7506. (1) Whether or not the terms of a trust contain a spendthrift provision, the following rules apply: (a) During the lifetime of the settlor, the property of a revocable trust is subject to claims of the settlor's creditors. (b) After the death of a settlor, and subject …

Sec. 7507. (1) Whether or not a trust contains a spendthrift provision, a creditor or assignee of a trust beneficiary may reach a mandatory distribution of income or principal, including a distribution upon termination of the trust, if the trustee has not made the distribution to…

Sec. 7508. Trust property is not subject to personal obligations of the trustee, even if the trustee becomes insolvent or bankrupt.

Sec. 7601. The capacity required to create, amend, revoke, or add property to a revocable trust, or to direct the actions of the trustee of a revocable trust, is the same as that required to make a will.

Sec. 7602. (1) Unless the terms of a trust expressly provide that the trust is irrevocable, the settlor may revoke or amend the trust. This subsection does not apply to any of the following: (a) A trust created under a trust instrument executed before April 1, 2010. (b) A trust c…

Sec. 7603. (1) Subject to subsection (2), while a trust is revocable, rights of the trust beneficiaries are subject to the control of, and the duties of the trustee are owed exclusively to, the settlor. This subsection does not apply to either of the following: (a) A trust create…

Sec. 7604. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2), a person may commence a judicial proceeding to contest the validity of a trust that was revocable at the settlor's death within the earlier of the following: (a) Two years after the settlor's death. (b) Six months after the tru…

Sec. 7605. (1) The property of a trust over which the settlor has the right without regard to the settlor's mental capacity, at his or her death, either alone or in conjunction with another person, to revoke the trust and revest principal in himself or herself is subject to all o…

Sec. 7606. (1) A trustee of a trust described in section 7605(1) shall pay to the personal representative of the settlor's estate the amount that the personal representative certifies in writing to the trustee is required to pay the administration expenses of the settlor's estate…

Sec. 7607. (1) The following rules apply to section 7606(2): (a) Upon the failure or insufficiency of money or property out of which payment should be made, to the extent of the insufficiency, a distribution of property from the trust that is to be satisfied out of specified or i…

Sec. 7608. If there is no personal representative of the settlor's estate to whom letters of administration have been issued so that the publication and notice requirements of section 3801 have not been discharged, each trustee of a trust described in section 7605(1) shall publis…

Sec. 7609. (1) Subject to section 7611, if notice to claimants is given by a trustee as provided in section 7608, a claimant shall present a claim against a trust described in section 7605(1) in either of the following ways: (a) The claimant may mail or deliver to the trustee a w…

Sec. 7610. (1) Subject to section 7611, if not barred earlier by another statute of limitations, a claim against the settlor of a trust described in section 7606(1) that arose at or before the settlor's death that a person seeks to recover from the trust is barred against the tru…

Sec. 7611. If there is no personal representative appointed for the settlor's estate and notice is given in accordance with section 7608, the allowance or disallowance of a claim presented in the manner described in section 7609(1) and within a time period described in section 76…

Sec. 7612. (1) Upon the expiration of 4 months after the date of the publication of the notice to creditors, the trustee shall proceed to pay the claims allowed against the trust in the order of priority prescribed in section 7607(2)(f) to (i), after making provision for costs an…

Sec. 7613. Payment of a secured claim shall be upon the basis of the amount allowed if the creditor surrenders the security. Otherwise, payment shall be upon the basis of 1 of the following: (a) If the creditor exhausts the security before receiving payment, upon the claim amount…

Sec. 7614. A claim that will become due at a future time, a contingent claim, or an unliquidated claim is governed by the following: (a) If a claim becomes due or certain before the distribution of the trust, and if the claim is allowed or established by a proceeding, the claim s…

Sec. 7615. In allowing a claim, the trustee may deduct a counterclaim that the trustee has against the claimant. In determining a claim against a trust, the court shall reduce the amount allowed by the amount of a counterclaim and, if the total counterclaims exceed the claim, ren…

Sec. 7701. (1) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (3), a person designated as trustee accepts the trusteeship by doing either of the following: (a) Substantially complying with a method of acceptance provided in the terms of the trust. (b) If the terms of the trust do not…

Sec. 7702. (1) A trustee shall give bond to secure performance of the trustee's duties only if the court finds that a bond is needed to protect the interests of the trust beneficiaries or is required by the terms of the trust and the court has not dispensed with the requirement. …

Sec. 7703. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, cotrustees shall act by majority decision. (2) A cotrustee shall participate in the performance of a trustee's function unless the cotrustee is unavailable to perform the function because of absence, illness, disqualifi…

Sec. 7703a. (1) Excepting the rules of construction in subsection (2), this section does not apply to: (a) A power of appointment that is intended to be held by the donee in a nonfiduciary capacity. (b) A power that is intended to be held in a nonfiduciary capacity that enables t…

Sec. 7703b. (1) A trust instrument may include a separate trustees provision. (2) While a separate trustees provision applies, the whole trusteeship of the aggregate trust is divided, under the terms of the separate trustees provision, into discrete sets of separately accepted fi…

Sec. 7704. (1) A vacancy in a trusteeship occurs if 1 or more of the following occur: (a) A person designated as trustee rejects the trusteeship. (b) A person designated as trustee cannot be identified or does not exist. (c) A trustee resigns. (d) A trustee is disqualified or rem…

Sec. 7705. (1) A trustee may resign in either of the following circumstances: (a) Upon at least 28 days' notice to the qualified trust beneficiaries, the holders of powers of appointment, and all cotrustees. (b) With the approval of the court. (2) In approving a resignation, the …

Sec. 7706. (1) The settlor, a cotrustee, or a qualified trust beneficiary may request the court to remove a trustee, or a trustee may be removed by the court on its own initiative. (2) The court may remove a trustee if 1 or more of the following occur: (a) The trustee commits a s…

Sec. 7707. (1) Unless a cotrustee remains in office or the court otherwise orders, and until the trust property is delivered to a successor trustee or other person entitled to it, a trustee who has resigned or been removed has the duties of a trustee and the powers necessary to p…

Sec. 7708. (1) If the terms of a trust do not specify the trustee's compensation, a trustee is entitled to compensation that is reasonable under the circumstances. (2) If the terms of a trust specify the trustee's compensation, the trustee is entitled to be compensated as specifi…

Sec. 7709. (1) A trustee is entitled to be reimbursed out of the trust property, with interest as appropriate, for both of the following: (a) Expenses that were properly incurred in the administration of the trust. (b) To the extent necessary to prevent unjust enrichment of the t…

Sec. 7801. Upon acceptance of a trusteeship, the trustee shall administer the trust in good faith, expeditiously, in accordance with its terms and purposes, for the benefit of the trust beneficiaries, and in accordance with this article.

Sec. 7802. (1) A trustee shall administer the trust solely in the interests of the trust beneficiaries. (2) Subject to the rights of persons dealing with or assisting the trustee as provided in section 7912, a sale, encumbrance, or other transaction involving the investment or ma…

Sec. 7803. The trustee shall act as would a prudent person in dealing with the property of another, including following the standards of the Michigan prudent investor rule. If the trustee has special skills or is named trustee on the basis of representation of special skills or e…

Sec. 7808. While a trust is revocable, the trustee may follow a direction of the settlor that is contrary to the terms of the trust.

Sec. 7810. A trustee shall take reasonable steps to take control of and protect the trust property.

Sec. 7811. (1) A trustee shall keep adequate records of the administration of the trust. (2) A trustee shall keep trust property separate from the trustee's own property. (3) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (4), to the extent that property is held by someone other than…

Sec. 7812. A trustee shall take reasonable steps to enforce claims of the trust and to defend claims against the trust.

Sec. 7813. (1) A trustee shall take reasonable steps to locate trust property and to compel a former trustee or other person to deliver trust property to the trustee. (2) A resigning trustee or a trustee being replaced by a successor may retain a reasonable reserve for the paymen…

Sec. 7814. (1) A trustee shall keep the qualified trust beneficiaries reasonably informed about the administration of the trust and of the material facts necessary for them to protect their interests. Unless unreasonable under the circumstances, a trustee shall promptly respond t…