Which of the following is true about pour-over trusts?

• A. They must be executed with the same formalities as a will
• B. They must be in existence before or contemporaneously with the will
• C. They do not need to be in writing
• D. They require no trustee sign

Answer: (B)

Pour-over trusts work by directing that assets not otherwise disposed of by the will pass into a trust named in the will, rather than going outright to beneficiaries. For this arrangement to work, the trust must already exist at the time the will is drafted so the will can validly pour those assets into the trust and have them governed by its terms after death. If the trust is created after the will, there is nothing for the will to pour into, so the intended disposition would not take effect as a pour-over. That’s why the requirement is that the trust be in existence before or contemporaneously with the will. The other statements miss the practical reality: a pour-over relies on proper trust formation and the trust’s own formalities, not on the will’s formalities alone, and a valid trust typically involves a trustee who is capable of taking on the duties; saying no trustee sign is required would ignore the need for a valid, accepted trust structure.