Trust Property as Marital Property?
In C.S. v. R.H.,1 a case of first impression in New York, the court determined that the entire value of assets held in an irrevocable trust created during the marriage was includible in the value of the marital estate available for equitable distribution between the parties. The court found that it was compelled:
… to consider the value of the marital assets in the Trusts in fashioning its equitable distribution award because: (1) the majority of the parties’ assets are contained in the Trusts, they used these assets to fund and support their lifestyle, and Wife reasonably expected to enjoy the use and benefit of the Trust assets in the future; and (2) Husband never relinquished control over the Trust assets.2
The court concluded there was…
