Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in North Carolina

You are the executor of the will for your son but that does not make you the trustee of the money or the custodian of the account for the child. Your duties as executor only extend to distributing the money to the child's trustee or custodian. So you begin with the will. What does it say? If you don't know then a probate attorney is going to have to assist in interpreting it. Is there some other provision in the will appointing a custodian or trustee? If so, who is named? Is it you?

Was the will drafted by an attorney or was it a do-it-yourself will? If by an attorney, then any custodial gifts should comply with the uniform transfers/gifts to minors at. Each state has their own version, below is North Carolina's. If the will is a do-it-yourself job and is silent, your son should check the rules and revise his will so that he makes the proper designation of a custodian.

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� 33A-3. Nomination of custodian.

(a) A person having the right to designate the recipient of property transferable upon

the occurrence of a future event may revocably nominate a custodian to receive the property for

a minor beneficiary upon the occurrence of the event by naming the custodian followed in

substance by the words: "as custodian for ____________________ (name of minor) under the

North Carolina Uniform Transfers to Minors Act." The nomination may name one or more

persons as substitute custodians to whom the property must be transferred, in the order named,

if the first nominated custodian dies before the transfer or is unable, declines, or is ineligible to

serve. The nomination may be made in a will, a trust, a deed, an instrument exercising a power

of appointment, or in a writing designating a beneficiary of contractual rights which is

registered with or delivered to the payor, issuer, or other obligor of the contractual rights.

(b) A custodian nominated under this section must be a person to whom a transfer of

property of that kind may be made under G.S. 33A-9(a).

(c) The nomination of a custodian under this section does not create custodial property

until the nominating instrument becomes irrevocable or a transfer to the nominated custodian is

completed under G.S. 33A-9. Unless the nomination of a custodian has been revoked, upon the

occurrence of the future event the custodianship becomes effective and the custodian shall

enforce a transfer of the custodial property pursuant to G.S. 33A-9.