Can one spouse amend or revoke a joint trust?
Key takeaway
A spouse's ability to amend or revoke a joint trust depends on the trust terms, the property it holds, and the state's rule. In Missouri and West Virginia, either spouse acting alone may revoke a trust holding community property, but amendment requires both spouses to act jointly. Wisconsin applies that distinction to trusts holding marital or community property. Missouri and Wisconsin also have rules on settlor authority and amendment methods.
Missouri, West Virginia, and Wisconsin distinguish revocation from amendment
For a revocable trust holding community property in Missouri or West Virginia, either spouse acting alone may revoke it, while amendment requires joint action.
The property condition matters. The rules describe trusts holding the specified property, not every joint trust in those states.
The stated rules depend on the property held and, for Wisconsin, whether the trust is revocable.
Missouri gives a settlor a default rule
Missouri allows a settlor to revoke or amend a trust unless its terms expressly provide that it is irrevocable. An exception applies to a trust created under an instrument executed before a specified cutoff.
The settlor rule describes authority over the trust, while the community property rule addresses action by spouses. The terms and property conditions remain relevant to how those rules apply.
Wisconsin ties changes to the trust's method
Wisconsin permits a settlor to revoke or amend a revocable trust by substantially complying with the method stated in the trust terms. When the terms provide no method, statutory alternative methods apply.
The method rule concerns how a settlor changes a revocable trust. The separate spouse rule says amendment of a trust holding marital or community property requires both spouses to act jointly.
Florida community property trusts have described terms
A Florida community property trust may set terms for rights, obligations, management, disposition, and revocability. A surviving spouse may amend or revoke that spouse's half after the first spouse dies, even if the trust is irrevocable.
Under a Florida community property trust, the surviving spouse's half of the community property is a central feature of the arrangement.