Complex Will with Trust - Rhode Island

LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT

and Testamentary Trust of [TESTATOR FULL LEGAL NAME]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Declaration and Family Information
2. Definitions
3. Executor, Trustee, and Guardian
4. Expenses, Taxes, and Specific Gifts
5. Residuary Estate and Testamentary Trust
6. Trustee Administration
7. Digital Assets
8. Liability and Remedies
9. Governing Law, Courts, and Dispute Resolution
10. General Provisions
11. Execution, Witness Attestation, and Proof Affidavit

1. DECLARATION AND FAMILY INFORMATION

I, [TESTATOR FULL LEGAL NAME], residing at [ADDRESS], [CITY OR TOWN], Rhode Island, declare this instrument to be my Last Will and Testament. I am at least eighteen years old and of sane mind as required by R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-2.

I revoke all prior wills and codicils. Revocation of a Rhode Island will is governed by R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-10.

My marital status is [MARRIED / UNMARRIED / WIDOWED / DIVORCED]. My spouse, if any, is [SPOUSE NAME]. The persons I intend to identify as my descendants are [NAMES AND RELATIONSHIPS].

2. DEFINITIONS

“Beneficiary” means a person or organization entitled to receive property under this Will or the Trust.

“Descendants by representation” means that each living branch takes the share allocated to that branch, with a deceased member's share passing through that member's descendants.

“Executor” means the personal representative appointed after nomination under Article 3.

“Residue” means all property subject to disposition by this Will that is not otherwise effectively disposed of, after payment or reservation for proper estate charges.

“Trust” means the testamentary trust created in Article 5.

“Trustee” means each initial, successor, or additional trustee serving under Article 6.

3. EXECUTOR, TRUSTEE, AND GUARDIAN

3.1 Executor

I nominate [PRIMARY EXECUTOR NAME AND ADDRESS] as Executor. If that person does not qualify or ceases to serve, I nominate [SUCCESSOR NAME AND ADDRESS].

Subject to this Will and applicable law, the Executor may seek and exercise, when authorized, the borrowing, investment, voting, and other administration powers in R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 33-9-14 to 33-9-19.

3.2 Bond and Surety

I request that the Executor and any guardian named in this Will be exempt from providing surety. Under R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-17-4, this request does not eliminate the bond itself, and the probate court may require a bond with surety at any time.

3.3 Trustee and Successors

I appoint [PRIMARY TRUSTEE NAME AND ADDRESS] as initial Trustee. If that person rejects the appointment, cannot serve, or ceases to serve, I appoint [SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE NAME AND ADDRESS].

If no named Trustee can serve, an appropriate court may appoint a successor under R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 18-2-1 to 18-2-8 and §§ 8-9-9 and 8-2-13.

3.4 Guardian of Minor Children

I appoint [PRIMARY GUARDIAN NAME] and, if that person cannot serve, [ALTERNATE GUARDIAN NAME], as guardian for any minor child requiring a guardian. The appointment is subject to the surviving-parent rule and probate-court approval in R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-15.1-7.

4. EXPENSES, TAXES, AND SPECIFIC GIFTS

4.1 Expenses and Claims

The Executor shall pay or reserve for legally enforceable debts, reasonable funeral and burial expenses, administration expenses, and other proper charges against the Estate. This direction does not validate a barred or unenforceable claim or alter a statutory priority.

4.2 Taxes

Complete one after review by Rhode Island tax counsel:

☐ Death taxes attributable to property passing under this Will or otherwise shall be paid from the Residue without apportionment, to the extent this direction is enforceable.

☐ Death taxes shall be apportioned as follows: [INSERT EXPRESS METHOD].

4.3 Specific Gifts

I make the following specific gifts as provisions of this executed Will:

1. [DESCRIPTION OR AMOUNT] to [BENEFICIARY].
2. [DESCRIPTION OR AMOUNT] to [BENEFICIARY].
3. [DESCRIPTION OR AMOUNT] to [BENEFICIARY].

Do not use a beneficiary as an attesting witness. Under R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-6-1, a beneficial gift to an attesting witness is void as to that witness and persons claiming under the witness.

Unless this Will provides otherwise, substitution for a beneficiary who dies before me leaving surviving issue is governed by R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-6-19. Other failed gifts are governed by § 33-6-20.

5. RESIDUARY ESTATE AND TESTAMENTARY TRUST

I give the Residue to the Trustee, IN TRUST, to administer and distribute under Article 6. The Trust is created by this written Will and is subject to Rhode Island law, including R.I. Gen. Laws § 18-4-27.

5.1 Name and Beneficiaries

The Trust shall be known as “The [TESTATOR SURNAME] Testamentary Trust.” Its beneficiaries are [IDENTIFY BENEFICIARIES OR DEFINITE CLASS].

5.2 Separate Shares and Distributions

The Trustee shall establish a separate share for each [BENEFICIARY / BRANCH OF DESCENDANTS].

Before final distribution, the Trustee may distribute income or principal for a beneficiary's health, education, maintenance, and support after considering [OTHER RESOURCES / DO NOT CONSIDER OTHER RESOURCES].

Each beneficiary shall receive:

• [PERCENTAGE] at age [AGE];
• [PERCENTAGE OF REMAINDER] at age [AGE]; and
• the balance at age [AGE].

If a beneficiary dies before complete distribution, the remaining share shall pass to [BENEFICIARY'S DESCENDANTS BY REPRESENTATION / ALTERNATE BENEFICIARIES].

5.3 Spendthrift Direction

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, each beneficiary's interest is restrained against voluntary and involuntary transfer before receipt.

6. TRUSTEE ADMINISTRATION

6.1 Duties and Investment Standard

The Trustee shall invest and manage Trust assets under the prudent-investor rule in R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 18-15-1 and 18-15-2 and solely in the beneficiaries' interests as required by § 18-15-5.

Any delegation of investment or management functions must satisfy R.I. Gen. Laws § 18-15-9.

6.2 Powers

Subject to fiduciary duties, this Will, and court orders, the Trustee may exercise the powers in R.I. Gen. Laws § 18-4-2, including authority to:

1. invest and reinvest Trust property;
2. sell, lease, partition, or exchange Trust property;
3. vote securities by proxy;
4. participate in reorganizations, mergers, recapitalizations, and similar actions;
5. allocate assets on partial or final distribution; and
6. execute instruments reasonably necessary to administer those powers.

6.3 Information, Accounts, Compensation, and Expenses

The Trustee shall keep complete records and provide a written annual account to each adult current beneficiary, unless the beneficiary waives it in writing.

The Trustee is entitled under this Will to reasonable compensation and reimbursement from the Trust for proper administration expenses. These directions do not excuse a breach of fiduciary duty.

6.4 Small-Trust Termination

Small-trust termination is governed by R.I. Gen. Laws § 18-4-24. A corporate trustee may use the statutory procedure for a trust with principal below $200,000, subject to its notice, objection, waiting-period, and distribution requirements. An individual trustee must obtain Superior Court approval under § 18-4-24(e).

6.5 Trustee Removal

This Will creates no beneficiary-majority removal power or mandatory cure period. The probate court and Superior Court have the concurrent testamentary-trust powers stated in R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 8-9-9 and 8-2-13.

7. DIGITAL ASSETS

Under R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-27.1-4(b), I expressly consent to disclosure to my Executor of the content of my electronic communications and my other digital assets. The Executor may request disclosure under §§ 33-27.1-7 and 33-27.1-8 and may exercise authority only within the duties and limits stated in § 33-27.1-15 and other applicable law.

I also consent to disclosure to the Trustee of electronic-communication content held in an account of the Trust when R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-27.1-12 applies.

A qualifying online-tool direction overrides a contrary direction in this Will to the extent provided by R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-27.1-4(a).

8. LIABILITY AND REMEDIES

8.1 No Blanket Liability Cap

This Will creates no blanket limitation of a Trustee's liability to Trust assets and includes no release from duties imposed by applicable law.

8.2 Court Relief

Nothing in this Will limits remedies available under applicable law from a court with jurisdiction. This Will creates no cure period that delays emergency or statutory relief.

9. GOVERNING LAW, COURTS, AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION

9.1 Governing Law

Rhode Island law governs this Will and the Trust while Rhode Island is the applicable jurisdiction.

9.2 Probate and Trust Jurisdiction

The municipal probate court has the jurisdiction stated in R.I. Gen. Laws § 8-9-9, including probate of wills and specified powers concerning a testamentary trustee. The Superior Court has the equitable jurisdiction stated in § 8-2-13, including concurrent power to replace, remove, or fill a vacancy of a trustee under a trust established by will.

An aggrieved person may appeal a probate-court order or decree to the Superior Court under the jurisdictional deadlines and de novo procedure in R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-23-1.

9.3 Arbitration and Jury Rights

This Will does not require arbitration. R.I. Gen. Laws § 18-4-3 permits a Trustee to enter a rule of court to submit estate-related matters in dispute to arbitration and award.

This Will does not waive any jury right that otherwise exists. Jury entitlement and procedure are governed by applicable court rules and law in the tribunal with jurisdiction.

9.4 Optional No-Contest Provision

Complete one only after Rhode Island counsel reviews enforceability and the alternate disposition:

☐ No no-contest provision is included.

☐ The following provision is included: [INSERT REVIEWED TERMS AND ALTERNATE DISPOSITION].

10. GENERAL PROVISIONS

10.1 Survival

A beneficiary must survive me by [NUMBER] days to take under this Will, except when this Will expressly provides otherwise. This survival term is subject to the anti-lapse provisions addressed in Article 4.

10.2 Amendment and Revocation

Any later will or codicil must satisfy applicable execution law. Revocation is governed by R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-10.

10.3 Severability

If a provision is held invalid, the remaining provisions continue to the extent they can operate consistently with my plan and applicable law.

10.4 Headings and Construction

Headings are for convenience only. Words used in the singular include the plural when appropriate, and a fiduciary designation includes a properly appointed successor.

11. EXECUTION AND WITNESS ATTESTATION

11.1 Execution Requirements

R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-5 requires a written Will signed by the Testator, or by another person in the Testator's presence and at the Testator's express direction. The Testator must sign or acknowledge the signature in the presence of at least two witnesses present at the same time, and the witnesses must attest and subscribe the Will in the Testator's presence.

R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-7-26 permits one or more subscribing witnesses to make a proof affidavit at any time after execution, before or after the Testator's death. In the absence of an objection by an interested person, the probate court may accept the affidavit as sufficient evidence of due execution. It is not a substitute for contested-probate proof.

11.2 Testator Signature

I, [TESTATOR FULL LEGAL NAME], sign this instrument as my Last Will and Testament in the presence of the witnesses identified below.

Signed on [__/__/____] at [CITY OR TOWN], Rhode Island.

_______________________________________

[TESTATOR FULL LEGAL NAME], Testator

11.3 Witness Attestation

We were both present at the same time when the Testator signed this Will or acknowledged the Testator's signature. At the Testator's request, each of us attests and subscribes this Will in the Testator's presence.

11.4 Optional Affidavit of Subscribing Witnesses

This affidavit follows R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-7-26(2)–(3). It may be signed at any time after execution of the Will.

STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

COUNTY OF [COUNTY]

In [CITY OR TOWN], on [__/__/____], before me personally appeared [WITNESS 1 NAME] and [WITNESS 2 NAME], who, being duly sworn, depose and say:

1. They witnessed the execution of the Will of [TESTATOR FULL LEGAL NAME].
2. The signature on the Will is in the Testator's handwriting or was made by another person for the Testator, in the Testator's presence and at the Testator's express direction.
3. The Testator subscribed the Will and declared it to be the Testator's Last Will in their presence.
4. They thereafter subscribed the Will as witnesses in the presence of the Testator and in the presence of each other.
5. At execution, the Testator appeared to be of sound mind and at least eighteen years old.
6. Their signatures on the Will are genuine.

_______________________________________

[WITNESS 1 NAME], Affiant

_______________________________________

[WITNESS 2 NAME], Affiant

Subscribed and sworn before me on [__/__/____].

(Seal)

_______________________________________

Notary Public

My Commission Expires: __________________

Sources and References

• Rhode Island General Assembly, Title 33, Chapter 5 — Execution and Revocation of Wills
• Rhode Island General Assembly, Title 33, Chapter 6 — Proof and Construction of Wills
• Rhode Island General Assembly, Title 33, Chapter 7 — Custody and Probate of Wills
• Rhode Island General Assembly, Title 33, Chapter 15.1 — Guardianship of Minors
• Rhode Island General Assembly, Title 33, Chapter 27.1 — Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets
• Rhode Island General Assembly, Title 18, Chapter 4 — Powers of Fiduciaries
• Rhode Island General Assembly, Title 18, Chapter 15 — Uniform Prudent Investor Act
• Rhode Island General Assembly, Title 8, Chapter 9 — Probate Courts

END OF DOCUMENT