SB 309 — Changes to Estates and Trusts Statutes.

FILED SENATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA MarSESSION 17, 2025 S.B.S 1 SENATE BILL 309 Short Title:

309 SESSION 2025 PRINCIPAL CLERK S D SENATE BILL DRS15136-MQ-33A Short Title:

Rules and Operations of the Senate March 18, 2025 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED ANACT TO ENACT THENORTHCAROLINAUNIFORMTHE NORTHCAROLINAUNIFORM ELECTRONIC WILLS ACT;

*DRS15136-MQ-33A**S309-v-1* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 b.

(a) An individual maymaycreate create a certified paper copycopyof of an electronic will bybycertifyingthat certifying that a paper copy of the electronic will is a complete, true, and accurate copy of the electronic will.

The electronic record shall include a certification, signed bybythe the person who has converted the attested written will to an electronic will, in the form of an affidavit sworn to or affirmed before an officer authorized to administer oaths, that the electronic form of the attested written will is a complete, true, and accurate copy of the attested written will.

If the person converting the attested written will to an electronic will is not the Page 2 DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 testator, the certification shall also contain a statement that the testator expressly authorized the conversion of the attested written will to an electronic will.

Proof of other circumstances that satisfysatisfythe the clerk of the superior court as to the genuineness and due execution of the will.

DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition Page 3 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (a) Any petitioner who is a resident of North Carolina and who has executed a will or codicil may file a petition seeking a judicial declaration that the will or codicil is valid.

If an interested partypartycontests contests the validityvalidityof of the will or codicil, that person shall file a written challenge to the will or codicil before the hearing or make an objection to the validity of the will or codicil at the hearing.

No will is valid unless it complies with the requirements prescribed therefor bybythis this Article.of this Chapter." SECTION 1.6.

Page 4 DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 The clerk of the superior court in each county of North Carolina shall be required to keep a receptacle or depository in which any person who desires to do so may file that person's will for safekeeping;

– The valuation of partial and contingent propertyinterests, outright orin trust, whicharelimitedto commenceor terminateuponterminateuponthedeath thedeath of one or more persons, upon the expiration of a period of time, or upon the occurrence of one or more contingencies, shall be determined by computations based upon the mortality and annuity tables set forth in G.S.

During At all times during the lifetime of the surviving spouse, the trust is controlled by (i) one or more nonadverse trustees.trustees, includingincludingsuccessortrustees, successortrustees,(ii)thesurvivingspouseas (ii)thesurviving spouseas trustee,or(iii) one or more nonadverse trustees and the surviving spouse as co-trustees, including successor trustees.

DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition Page 5 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 d.

In exercising discretion, the trustee (1a) Notwithstanding any requirements in subdivision (1) of this subsection to the contrary, thetermsofthe trust maybe authorized authorizeorauthorize requiredorrequired require the trustee, in exercising discretion, to take into consideration all other income assets income, assets, and other means of support available to the surviving spouse.

– The right of the surviving spouse to file a claim for an elective share must be exercised during the lifetime of the surviving spouse, by the surviving spouse, by the surviving spouse's agent if the surviving spouse's power of attorney expresslyexpresslyauthorizes authorizes theagent to dosoortodo generallyengageinso estate,orto trusts,generallyengagein andestate,trusts,andotherbeneficial other beneficial interests, or, with approval of court, by the guardian of the surviving spouse's estate or general guardian.

The petition shall also be Page 6 DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 served on all responsible persons as those persons become known to the petitioner in accordance with G.S.

The failure to serve the petition for elective share on the personal representative or anyanyother other person within the six-month period described in subsection (b) of this section shall not render the claim for elective share as being untimely filed.

An extension of time to file aresponsivepleadingtothepetitionmaybegrantedasprovidedbyaresponsivepleadingtothepetitionmaybegrantedasprovidedbyG.S. G.S.

Thetrusteeistrustandshallnotbesubject toliabilityfordoingtoliabilityfordoingsounless:so, sounless:so, except that the trustee shall not distribute trust property to anyanybeneficiaryin beneficiary in contravention of the rights of any person who may be affected by the outcome of a pending or possible judicial proceeding if, at the time the distribution is made, any of the following apply:

Upon motion of a party and after notice to interested parties, a court, on good cause shown, may make an exception to the provisions of DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition Page 7 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 subsection (b) of this section and authorize the trustee to distribute trust assets to a beneficiary, subject to any conditions the court, in the court's discretion, may impose, including the posting of a bond by the beneficiary.

Page 8 DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 "§ 30-17.

(a) Everychild ofadecedent whois undertheageof21yearsatundertheageof21 yearsat thetimeofthedecedent's death, including an adopted child or a child in utero, and every child who is under the age of 21 years at the time of the decedent's death with whom the decedent stood in loco parentis at the time of death, shall be entitled to receive an allowance having a value of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for the child's support for one year after the death of the decedent.

In addition, if a personal representative has been appointed for the decedent's estate, a copy of the verified petition must be personallypersonallydelivered delivered or sent bybyfirst-class first-class mail by the petitioner to the personal representative.

(d) The child's allowance shall be exempt from anyanylien lienbyjudgment by judgment or execution against the property of the decedent or any other claim made against or owed by the decedent's estate exceptthatthespouse'sallowanceunderG.S.

Once the spouse's allowance has been awarded, the clerk of court shall next ascertain if anychildrenofanychildren of thedecedent are entitled to an allowance according to the provisions of this Article, and, if so, enter an order setting forth the personal property of the estate to be awarded for the child's allowance.

If a personal representative has been appointed for the decedent's estate, the deficiencydeficiencyshall shall be satisfied bybythe the personal representative when a sufficiency of such assets shall come into the possession of the personal representative.

DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition Page 9 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (c) The clerk of court may, on the clerk's own motion, determine that a hearing is necessary to determine whether a year's allowance should be awarded pursuant to the provisions of this Article and, if so, what personal property should be awarded.

30-20(c), by the petitionerorbypetitionerorbyorderoftheclerk orderoftheclerkjoiningtherespondents joining therespondents to theproceeding totodetermineanaward determineanaward of an allowance under this Article, then any person with standing, including the personal representative of the decedent's estate, who was not a party to the contested estate proceeding may bring a proceeding in accordance with this section.

90-210.64(d), the sum tendered to the clerk would not maketheaggregatesum whichhas comeintocomeintotheclerk's theclerk's hands belonging to the decedent exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000).

(c) If the sum tendered pursuant to this section would make the aggregate sum coming into the clerk's hands with respect to any one decedent exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) the clerkclerkshall shall appoint an administrator,orthesum maybeadministered under theprecedingtheprecedingsections sections of this Article.

Page 10 DRS15136-MQ-33ASenate Bill 309-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (f) If no administrator has been appointed, the clerk of superior court shall, upon motion of the clerk or upon the application of an interested party, disburse the money received under this section for the following purposes and in the following order:

(1) To paypaythe thesurvivingspouse's surviving spouse's year's allowance and children's year's allowance assigned in accordance with law.law, except that if (i) it has been greater than six months since the date of death of the decedent and (ii) there has been no petitionfiledandassignmentofaspouse'sorchild'syear'spetitionfiledandassignmentofaspouse'sorchild's year's allowance,theclerk may disburse the money received under this section in accordance with the other provisions of this subsection.

111-18 and Part 3 of Article 2 of Chapter 108A of the General Statutes of North Carolina, Statutes, anyanylawful lawful claims for care provided by an adult care home to the deceased, incurred not more than 90 days prior to the deceased's death.

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