In Re The Carl Edwin Osborne, Jr. Living Trust, dated May 19, 2020

Syllabus

The decedent left a will in which he directed the majority of his property into a trust. Thetrust named his wife as the trustee. The trust made several specific distributions to wifeeffective upon the decedent's death, including the grant of life estate interests in certainassets. Several other beneficiaries were designated to receive distributions from the lifeestate assets upon wife's death. The trust directed its remaining assets into a separatemarital trust which provided that all income generated by its property would be distributedto wife. It also provided that the trustee would be required to distribute as much of theprincipal of the marital trust to wife as she requested in writing and granted her a power ofappointment. Several of the remaining trust beneficiaries filed a petition to construe thetrust in the Shelby County probate court. They sought an order declaring that the remainderinterests of assets in which wife had been granted life estates did not pass into the maritaltrust. The probate court held that the remainder interests did not pass into the marital trustand wife could not alter or destroy them. Wife appeals. We affirm in part and reverse inpart.