Ron Patterson, and v. Randy D. Patterson Estate of Darlene Patterson Judy Ann Henry Randy D. Patterson Gary E…

Summary

The Utah Supreme Court reversed summary judgment invalidating an amendment to a revocable trust that removed Ron Patterson as a beneficiary. It held that the Utah Uniform Trust Code superseded the prior strict-compliance rule and permitted the amendment because the trust did not make its specified amendment method exclusive and the amendment provided clear and convincing evidence of Darlene Patterson's intent. The court also held that Randy could raise the statutory argument for the first time on appeal because it involved controlling authority bearing directly on a preserved issue and could be resolved as a matter of law.