Section 7-309 Petition for transfers of trust property whose disposition depends upon the death of an absentee - Massachusetts Statutes

[Text of section added by 2008, 521, Sec. 9 effective July 1, 2011. See 2008, 521, Sec. 44.]

Section 7-309. [Petition for Transfers of Trust Property Whose Disposition Depends Upon the Death of an Absentee.]

(a) If a trustee holds trust property the disposition of which depends upon the death of an absentee whose death has not been determined under paragraph (1), (2) or (3) of section 1-107, on or after the day 5 years after the date of the absentee’s disappearance the trustee, or any person who would be interested in the trust property were the absentee dead, may petition the court having jurisdiction of the trust for an order that the trust property be disposed of to the persons to whom and in the shares or proportions in which it would be distributed under the provisions of the trust if the absentee had died on that day.

(b) The court may direct the petitioner to report the results of, or make and report back concerning, a reasonably diligent search for the absentee in any manner that may seem advisable, including any or all of the following methods:

(1) by inserting in 1 or more suitable periodicals a notice requesting information from any person having knowledge of the whereabouts of the absentee;

(2) by notifying law enforceable officials, public welfare agencies and registers of deaths in appropriate locations of the disappearance of the absentee;

(3) by engaging the services of an investigator.

The costs of any search so directed shall be paid from the trust property.

(c) After any such report directed by the court under paragraph (b) above has been completed to the satisfaction of the court, notice of the hearing on the petition shall be given as provided in section 1-401.

(d) If after the hearing the court finds that the facts warrant a presumption of death under paragraph (4) of section 1-107, it shall enter an appropriate order of disposition of the trust property and any undistributed net income.