Interpretation of bene des

[Bird]

Have a designation that reads:

My children or their issue per stirpes, otherwise

ABC trust.

There is one child, and he disclaims. My initial reading was that we skip the first line entirely and it goes to the trust, but I'm being told that a disclaimer is treated the same as a death, so it goes to the issue per stirpes. The more I think about it the more I think that's right. It's going to an attorney but I thought I'd throw it out here.

The benes are the same under the trust so it's not such a big deal.

[mbozek]

A disclaimant is treated as having predeceased the employee, thus making the contingent beneficaries, the children, the recipients of the benefits outright.