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    RJP Estate Planning

    Arizona clause library

    Plain-language reference to the named provisions and elections inside Arizona wills, trusts, powers of attorney, beneficiary forms, and deeds. Educational only, not legal advice.

    Browse by document type

    Will Provisions

    3 clauses

    Clauses you find inside a last will and testament.

    Clause

    Residuary Clause

    The catch-all that sweeps anything not specifically given.

    A residuary clause directs everything left in the estate after specific gifts, debts, taxes, and expenses are paid. Without one, anything not specifically devised passes by intestate succession.

    Clause

    No-Contest Clause (In Terrorem)

    Discourages challenges by forfeiting a beneficiary's share if they sue.

    A no-contest clause says a beneficiary who challenges the will or trust forfeits whatever the document left them. It only bites against people who would otherwise inherit, and Arizona enforces it only when the challenge lacks probable cause.

    Clause

    Common Disaster Clause

    Resolves the order of death when spouses or co-beneficiaries die together or close in time.

    A common disaster clause specifies what happens when the testator and a primary beneficiary die in the same event or within a stated window. It overrides the otherwise messy default rules for simultaneous or near-simultaneous deaths.

    Revocable Living Trust

    4 clauses

    Provisions inside a revocable (living) trust.

    Clause

    Spendthrift Clause

    Blocks creditors and prevents beneficiaries from assigning their interest.

    A spendthrift clause prevents a beneficiary from transferring their interest in the trust and prevents most of the beneficiary's creditors from attaching that interest before distributions are made.

    Clause

    Pour-Over Provision

    Sweeps stray assets from the will into the living trust at death.

    A pour-over provision in the companion will directs that anything still titled in the decedent's name at death is poured into the revocable living trust and administered under its terms.

    Clause

    HEMS Distribution Standard

    Limits trustee discretion to health, education, maintenance, and support.

    A HEMS standard limits the trustee's discretion to distributions for the beneficiary's health, education, maintenance, and support. Federal tax law treats HEMS as an ascertainable standard that avoids inclusion of the trust in the trustee's own estate when the trustee is also a beneficiary.

    Clause

    Trustee Succession Provision

    Sets the order in which successor trustees take over.

    A trustee succession provision names the order in which successor trustees take over when the current trustee dies, resigns, becomes incapacitated, or is removed.

    Irrevocable Trust

    1 clause

    Provisions inside irrevocable trusts of all kinds.

    Clause

    Trust Protector Provision

    Names a third party with power to course-correct an irrevocable trust.

    A trust protector provision appoints a person, separate from the trustee, with limited powers to amend administrative terms, remove and replace trustees, or otherwise course-correct an irrevocable trust as circumstances change.

    ILIT Provisions

    1 clause

    Provisions specific to irrevocable life insurance trusts.

    Clause

    Crummey Withdrawal Power

    Turns gifts to an irrevocable trust into present-interest gifts that qualify for the annual exclusion.

    A Crummey withdrawal power gives a trust beneficiary a short window — typically 30 days — to withdraw a contribution to the trust. The presence of that window converts the gift into a present-interest gift eligible for the federal annual gift tax exclusion.

    Special Needs Trust

    1 clause

    Provisions inside special needs trusts.

    Clause

    Sole Benefit Clause

    Restricts a special needs trust to distributions for the named beneficiary alone.

    A sole benefit clause restricts a first-party special needs trust to distributions made solely for the benefit of the disabled beneficiary, so the trust does not disqualify the beneficiary from needs-based government benefits.

    Asset Protection Trust

    1 clause

    Provisions inside domestic and offshore asset protection trusts.

    Clause

    Fully Discretionary Distribution Clause

    Gives the trustee absolute discretion over whether to distribute.

    A fully discretionary distribution clause grants the trustee complete discretion over whether, when, and how much to distribute to a beneficiary, leaving the beneficiary with no enforceable right to demand a distribution.

    Financial Power of Attorney

    2 clauses

    Provisions inside a financial (durable) power of attorney.

    Clause

    Gifting Power

    Lets the agent under a financial power of attorney make gifts on behalf of the principal.

    A gifting power expressly authorizes the agent under a financial power of attorney to make gifts of the principal's assets. Without this express grant, Arizona law presumes the agent has no power to give the principal's money away.

    Clause

    Springing Power Clause

    Delays an agent's authority until the principal is determined to be incapacitated.

    A springing power clause makes a financial power of attorney effective only on the principal's incapacity, rather than immediately on signing. Capacity is typically determined by one or two physicians under a defined procedure.

    Healthcare Power of Attorney

    1 clause

    Provisions inside a healthcare power of attorney.

    Clause

    Mental Health Treatment Clause

    Authorizes the healthcare agent to make inpatient mental health and psychotropic medication decisions.

    A mental health treatment clause grants the agent under a healthcare power of attorney specific authority over inpatient psychiatric admission, electroconvulsive therapy, and psychotropic medication, which Arizona requires to be separately authorized.

    Living Will / Advance Directive

    1 clause

    Provisions inside a living will or advance directive.

    Clause

    Comfort Care Only Election

    Directs caregivers to focus on comfort rather than life-prolonging treatment in defined end-of-life conditions.

    A comfort care only election in a living will instructs caregivers to withhold life-prolonging treatment in defined end-of-life conditions and focus on pain control, hygiene, and dignity.

    Beneficiary Designations

    1 clause

    Provisions inside life insurance, retirement, TOD, and POD designations.

    Clause

    Per Stirpes Beneficiary Designation

    Sends a deceased beneficiary's share to that beneficiary's own descendants.

    A per stirpes beneficiary designation directs that if a primary beneficiary predeceases the account owner, that beneficiary's share is divided among that beneficiary's own descendants rather than being redistributed to surviving co-beneficiaries.

    Deed Provisions

    1 clause

    Provisions inside beneficiary deeds, JTWROS deeds, and CPWROS deeds.

    Clause

    Beneficiary Deed Provision

    Transfers Arizona real property at death without probate, while preserving lifetime control.

    An Arizona beneficiary deed transfers real property to a named beneficiary at the grantor's death, outside probate, while leaving the grantor full ownership and control during life.

    About this library

    Every page describes what a clause does, why families include it, how Arizona law treats it, and where it tends to go wrong. The pages do not contain fill-in-the-blank templates and they are not a substitute for advice about your situation. Drafting is performed by partner attorneys we work with.