Special needs trust

Abstract

Parents who have a son or daughter suffering from a disability have undoubtedly thought of how they could provide for all the needs of their disabled child especially after their death. Most parents would probably resort to the traditional solutions available under our law since they are still not familiar with the mechanism of a special needs trust. I started off my thesis by first giving a brief background of trust law with particular reference to special needs trusts. I then moved on to distinguish between the traditional tools available to parents of a disabled child and the trust vehicle that can be used today thanks to the introduction of the Trust and Trustees Act. I also delved into the importance of being cautious when choosing the trustee of a special needs trust by pinpointing the qualities and duties of such a trustee. Since the process of choosing the trustee can be difficult and mind boggling I also mentioned other alternatives to the setting up of a special needs trust 'ex novo' such as choosing a corporate institution as trustee or else joining a pooled Trust. Since the essential purpose of a Special needs trust is usually to improve the quality of an individual's life without disqualifying him or here from eligibility to receive government assistance I dedicated a chapter that deals with the public benefit programs available in Malta. In this chapter I brought out what the trustee should or should not do to keep the beneficiary eligible for government assistance. In this thesis I also tried to bring out the differences between a living special needs trust and a testamentary special needs trust and also delved into how a special needs trust can be formulated to achieve the aims of the settlor.