Special Needs Trust Fairness Act

The Special Needs Trust Fairness Act passed in 2016 is now officially a law. This Act amends title XIX of the Social Security Act, allowing individuals with disabilities to establish their own supplemental needs trusts.

Title XIX of the Social Security Act had previously only allowed a trust “containing the assets of an individual under age 65 who is disabled (as defined in section 1614(a)(3))” to be “established for the benefit of such individual by a parent, grandparent, legal guardian of the individual, or a court”. The Special Needs Trust Fairness Act has amended this by inserting “the individual” after “for the benefit of such individual by”, thereby enabling disabled individuals to establish their own supplemental needs trust.

Authored by: Eliana Brook