Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1921-07-08
DEED OF TRUST
EXPLAINED BY LAW C0IIRT
IN IMPORTANT DECISION

| under will has been handed dou,,
| IN the following rescript:
AFFORD, Trustee, vs.. Richardson Et
| Ais 0'oi' FL
Hescript, Morrill, IA testator he
queathed to trustee certain shares
| OF the capital stock of three cornora-
lons' in trust to pay the net animal
income thereof to his brother "
ourihg MS natural life; and further
PROVIDED as follows: IF during tho
Ire OF said w. the income from said
| trust estate is insufficient for his
! comfortable support and main4o
nance, the, trustee NAV in his dicoro
'loh sell the stock of the A comnanv
- % huch thereof as may be nee
ESSAY ana OF the proceeds thereof
| Fay Such amounts to the said w.
| 'ioiil tlfne 10 time as may in his iudo-
| inent be suitable and proper 7 leave
| the whole matter to the sound iudp-
| Hnent and discretion of the trustee If
! the aforesaid funds prove insufficient
ior the comfortable support of the
SAID w., then in that event. if it is
/ absolutely necessary for his support
ana maintenance, | authorize and di-
! rect the trustee to dispose of so much
| Oh the stock of B. company as in his
! judgment may be suitable and proper
! Tor the aforesaid purpose" If WIS
| wife survived him. the net annual in
come was to be paid to her during
her natural life. The trust was 70
terminate upon the death of w, if he
survived his wife; if the wife sur
| VlVed, then upon her death.
Upon bill in equity by the trus
tee for instructions, held:
That it was the intention of the
testator to intcrpose between the
principal of the fund and w. and WIS
creditors, the discretion of a trustee
IN whom he had implicit confidence.
That as to the stock of A company
the discretionary power was con-
ferred in the broadcast terms; as to
| the stock of B company the power
was limited to absolute necessity; as
to the stock of c company no author
ity to sell was given. and such sale.
if advisable, must rest upon authority
to be granted by a court having ilr-
, isdiction of testamentary trusts. upon
special application therefor
That such a trust is valid and does
not confer an absolute estate in the
principal of the fund to the hencf-
ciary.
That the trustee is invested with
the right to use his own, discretion
and judgment in determining wheth-
er or not the conditions specified in
the will exist or not in fact, and as to
how much relief may properly be Civ
! en-. So long as he acts within his
power, honestly and in good faith. not
arbitrarily or capriciously, butt with
| reasonable prudence and that sound
ness of judgment which follows from
a due appreciation Of trust response
/ bility, his determination is concIu-
sive and his judgment will not be
| reviewed
! The trustee is accordingly advised
l. Payments made by the trustee
! from the trust funds arc to he made
to w during his lifetime After his
, death, if his wife survives him, pay
| ments of income are to be made to
her during her lifetime.
2. If the trustee in the exercise of
a sound discretion makes payments
to w. from the principal of the trust
/ fund, he is not in duty bound to see
that such payments are applied for
the comfortable support and mainte-
nance of W.
3. 1t was the intention of the tes-
| tator that w. and his wife, during
! their joint lives, should have the
means to live comfortably according
/ to their degree and station in life To
. y-h1 thDt To Io
| assured by expenditure from the
! principal invested in stock of A COM
| pany, he committed to the discre-
ton of the trustee; but the right to
exercise that discretion cannot arise
| unless the income is inefficient for
the comfortable support of w. and
his wife.
4. In the exercise of this discre-
ton the trustee has the right to. and
should, take into consideration fhe
amount and availability of VS. pri-
vate estate, as well as all other facts
and circumstances; he may refuse to
make any payments from the pro-
ceeds of the stock of A company, or
he may make such payments more
literally than the demands of abso-
lutte necessity may require.
5. When the funds derived from
the sale of stock of A company are
exhausted. the~expenditure from the
proceeds of sale of stock of r com
pany is limited to what is "abSOlutely
necessary" for the support and main
tenance of w. and his wife during his
lifetime, and expenditure Of princi-
pal for that purpose is authorized and
directed.
g. The trustee may make. but is
not in duty bound irrespective of his
own discretion and judgment, and
NAV refuse, to make payments from
principal for the past support and
maintenance of W. He should not
reimburse w. from principal for pay
ments made by the latter from his
private estate, for support and main
tenance.
7. Certain income from the trust
fund having been used, with the
knowledge of w. for the purpose OF
settlement of the estate, w. acknoWl-
edged in writing that he had received
the equivalent of such income in the
property turned over to him as his
share of the residue. He must abide
bv such acknowledgements.
s. Costs, expenses and reasonable
charges of counsel incurred by the