Agnes M. Gassmann Revocable Living Trust v. Reichert
Supreme Court of North Dakota
802 N.W.2d 889 (2011)
John A. and Agnes Gassmann's parent trusts (plaintiffs) held a majority interest in a family LLLP holding farmland, with the remaining share held by their son John T., for whom the LLLP was named. A trust provision addressing the LLLP interest was ambiguous and, if read literally, could be understood to distribute the LLLP assets equally among all four children rather than to John T. alone. The drafting attorney testified, backed by his handwritten notes from meeting with the settlors, that the provision contained a mistake and that the settlors actually intended the LLLP farmland to go to John T. alone; the other children (defendants) opposed reformation, and the district court reformed the trust in John T.'s favor.
Whether a trust should be reformed upon clear and convincing evidence that it does not reflect the settlor's actual intent because of a mistake of law or fact.