Summary
In August 2024, Delaware enacted Section 3345 to Title 12 of the Delaware Code – Descendants’ Estates and Fiduciary Relations – to codify the concept of a beneficiary well-being trust. This provision represents the first explicit statutory acknowledgment in U.S. trust law that cultivating beneficiary well-being—spanning education, engagement, and personal development—can constitute a primary, legally recognized trust purpose.
Whether viewed as evolutionary or revolutionary, this statutory development aligns trust law with the growing emphasis on emotional, psychological, and developmental well-being as integral components of individual and family flourishing. It is a notable milestone in a broader movement in the wealth management industry often described as “Wealth 3.0.”
This article explores the implications of Delaware’s new law for trustees, beneficiaries, and family office practitioners, with a focus on how leafplanner—a platform designed to map the structural, emotional, and human dimensions of family life—can serve as a vital enabler of this evolving fiduciary model. As well-being becomes a more common explicit directive in trust design, the demand for multidimensional, education- and empowerment-based trust administration will require more nuanced tools and frameworks. leafplanner is uniquely positioned to meet this challenge.
Introduction
For nearly five decades, Jay Hughes has challenged the wealth management industry to measure wealth and well-being in terms that extend far beyond financial metrics. Hughes pioneered the idea of a family balance sheet encompassing total capital—not only financial capital, but also spiritual, human, social, and intellectual capital (Family Wealth – Keeping it in the Family). Alongside colleagues Hartley Goldstone and Keith Whitaker, Hughes deepened the discourse on the trustee/beneficiary relationship (Family Trusts: A Guide for Beneficiaries, Trustees, Trust Protectors, and Trust Creators). Building further on this foundation, John A. Warnick founded the Purposeful Planning Institute, fostering cross-disciplinary dialogue on embedding purpose into trust design and wealth management.
While concepts such as purposefulness, well-being, and enhancing the trustee/beneficiary relationship have steadily evolved since Hughes’ early work, they have largely remained the domain of a specialized cadre of practitioners. Delaware’s enactment of its well-being trust provisions maintains the state’s preeminence in trust law innovation, shifting these conversations from niche theory to statutory reality.
The Trust Purpose Continuum
Trust creators vary widely in their intentions. Some design trusts as instruments of control—determining who receives what, when, and under what conditions. At the other end of the spectrum are those who reject “ruling from the grave,” instead seeking structures that enhance the lives of beneficiaries and promote family flourishing.
Historically, most trusts and trust statutes have focused on asset stewardship, assessing financial need, applying distribution standards (such as health, education, maintenance, and support), and maintaining records. Delaware’s well-being trust statute is significant because it is the first legislative framework to enshrine beneficiary flourishing as a primary purpose. In the context of the broader industry, it may be evolutionary; within the legislative landscape, it is nothing short of revolutionary.
The Well-Being Trust
In straightforward language, section 3345 directs trustees to provide beneficiaries with well-being programs as specified in the trust instrument—or, if not specified, as the trustee determines. Importantly, these programs may be funded by the trust and classified as administrative expenses rather than taxable distributions, a distinction that can reduce tax exposure while enabling trustees to fulfill developmental mandates efficiently.
“Well-being programs” are broadly defined to include initiatives that prepare beneficiaries to receive and manage wealth effectively. These include:
- Multigenerational estate and asset planning;
- Guidance in intergenerational asset transfers;
- Development of wealth management skills, financial literacy, and business acumen;
- Education in entrepreneurship and philanthropy; and
- Learning about family history, values, governance, dynamics, mental health, and fostering connection among family members.
By articulating these elements in law, Delaware broadens the interpretive latitude for what constitutes well-being, empowering trustees to tailor programs to each family’s unique context.
leafplanner’s Role in Well-Being
leafplanner is not a traditional trust accounting or portfolio management tool. It is a family information platform designed to organize and contextualize both tangible and intangible dimensions of a family’s ecosystem. In the context of a well-being trust, this distinction is transformative.
Where the statute envisions education in governance, philanthropy, and asset transfer, leafplanner provides a secure, structured environment for implementing these directives—turning statutory permission into operational practice. Its capabilities include:
- Capturing family history, guiding philosophies, philanthropic values, and legacy themes;
- Documenting relationships, purposes, and intentions central to estate and asset planning;
- Providing historical and strategic context for family businesses, investments, and philanthropy;
- Preserving family values and narratives;
- Facilitating family governance and strengthening intra-family connections;
- Supporting life, trust, and risk management; and
- Enhancing trustee/beneficiary engagement through holistic, integrated insights.
- Improving and deepening the trustee/beneficiary relationship.
By equipping trustees with a comprehensive and contextualized view of the family enterprise, leafplanner not only supports statutory compliance but also strengthens the human fabric of the trustee/beneficiary relationship.
Conclusion: Bridging Purpose and Practice
Delaware’s well-being trust statute marks a pivotal legislative moment—elevating concepts long championed by thought leaders into statutory recognition. Together with a well-crafted trust instrument and platforms like leafplanner, it enables families to design structures that honor the human experience, deepen trustee/beneficiary relationships, preserve the creator’s intent, and prepare beneficiaries to steward wealth with competence and purpose.
As other jurisdictions consider similar legislation, the professional definition of fiduciary excellence may increasingly require not only financial stewardship but also educational facilitation, emotional intelligence, and multidisciplinary collaboration. In this emerging paradigm, the bridge between purpose and practice will be built not solely on legal frameworks, but also on the human and relational capital they are designed to protect.
To learn more about how leafplanner’s unique platform can help trustees design and deliver well-being programs that align with Delaware’s §3345 framework—and, where permissible, treat them as administrative expenses—contact us to explore how leafplanner can serve as both a compliance tool and a catalyst for family flourishing.
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