A. If a fiduciary disclaims a power held in a fiduciary capacity that has not been exercised, the disclaimer takes effect as of the time the instrument creating the power becomes irrevocable.
B. If a fiduciary disclaims a power held in a fiduciary capacity that has been exercised, the disclaimer takes effect immediately after the last exercise of the power.
C. A disclaimer under this section is effective as to another fiduciary if the disclaimer so provides and the fiduciary disclaiming has the authority to bind the estate, trust or other person for whom the fiduciary is acting.
History: Laws 2001, ch. 290, § 11; 1978 Comp., § 46-10-11 recompiled as § 45-2-1111 by Laws 2011, ch. 124, § 101.
ANNOTATIONSRecompilations. — Laws 2011, ch. 124, § 101 recompiled former 46-10-11 NMSA 1978 as 45-2-1111 NMSA 1978, effective January 1, 2012.
COMMENT
This section governs disclaimers by fiduciaries of powers held in their fiduciary capacity. Examples include a right to remove and replace a trustee or a trustee's power to make distributions of income or principal. Such disclaimers have not been specifically dealt with in prior Uniform Acts although they could prove useful in several situations. A trustee who is also a beneficiary may want to disclaim a power to invade principal for himself for tax purposes. A trustee of a trust for the benefit for a surviving spouse who also has the power to invade principal for the decedent's descendants may wish to disclaim the power in order to qualify the trust for the marital deduction. (The use of a disclaimer in just that situation was approved in Cleaveland v. U.S., 62 A.F.T.R.2d 88-5992, 88-1 USTC 13,766 (C. D. Ill. 1988).)
The section refers to fiduciary in the singular. It is possible, of course, for a trust to have two or more co-trustees and an estate to have two or more co-personal representatives. This Act leaves the effect of actions of multiple fiduciaries to the general rules in effect in each State relating to multiple fiduciaries. For example, if the general rule is that a majority of trustees can make binding decisions, a disclaimer by two of three co-trustees of a power is effective. A dissenting co-trustee could follow whatever procedure state law prescribes for disassociating him or herself from the action of the majority. A sole trustee burdened with a power to invade principal for a group of beneficiaries including him or herself who wishes to disclaim the power but yet preserve the possibility of another trustee exercising the power would seek the appointment of a disinterested co-trustee to exercise the power and then disclaim the power for him or herself. The subsection thus makes the disclaimer effective only as to the disclaiming fiduciary unless the disclaimer states otherwise. If the disclaimer does attempt to bind other fiduciaries, be they co-fiduciaries or successor fiduciaries, the effect of the disclaimer will depend on local law.
As with any action by a fiduciary, a disclaimer of fiduciary powers must be compatible with the fiduciary's duties.