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Montana Pet Trusts
Support GuideMontana12 min read

Montana Pet Trusts

A Montana pet trust is valid under MCA 72-2-1017 and 72-38-408. It lasts as long as a covered animal lives, and a named person can enforce it.

By Settled Editorial

Montana lets you set money aside for your animal in a trust that someone can enforce in court. Two sections of the Montana Code Annotated say so: MCA 72-2-1017, headed "Honorary trusts -- trusts for pets," and MCA 72-38-408, headed "Trust for care of animal." Each one makes the trust valid, ends it when the animal dies, gives a person the right to enforce it, and lets a court trim an oversized fund.

Every section on this page was read on the Montana Legislature's own code site, where each page is labeled Montana Code Annotated 2025. The Legislature meets in odd-numbered years, so the 2025 code is the text in force until acts of the 2027 session take effect. Read this as a planning map for Montana law, not as advice about your animal or your family. A licensed Montana attorney should review any trust before you sign it.

Montana Has Two Pet Trust Sections, and Both Are in Force

Montana adopted the pet trust twice, in two different uniform acts, and kept both.

  • MCA 72-2-1017 sits in Title 72, Chapter 2, Part 10, headed "Uniform Statutory Rule Against Perpetuities -- Honorary Trusts." It follows the Uniform Probate Code. The Legislature enacted it in 1993 (Sec. 72, Ch. 494, L. 1993) and last amended it in 1995 (Sec. 23, Ch. 592, L. 1995).
  • MCA 72-38-408 sits in the Montana Uniform Trust Code, Title 72, Chapter 38. The Legislature enacted it in 2013 (Sec. 57, Ch. 264, L. 2013), and it has not been amended since.

The trust code points to its own animal section. MCA 72-38-402(1)(c)(ii) lists "a trust for the care of an animal, as provided in 72-38-408" as one of three exceptions to the rule that a trust needs a definite beneficiary. So your dog does not have to be a person for the trust to stand up. MCA 72-38-409, the general noncharitable-purpose section, opens with "Except as otherwise provided in 72-38-408 or by another statute."

Neither section repeals the other, and neither states which one controls where they differ. The code text does not settle that question, so this page does not guess. The practical answer is to write a trust that satisfies both, and the checklist near the end shows how.

What MCA 72-2-1017 Says

The trust is valid, and a court reads it in favor of real care

Subsection (2) says a trust for the care of a designated domestic or pet animal is valid. It then tells the court how to read your document: the governing instrument "must be liberally construed to bring the transfer within this subsection, to presume against the merely precatory or honorary nature of the disposition, and to carry out the general intent of the transferor." Extrinsic evidence is admissible in determining the transferor's intent.

Here is why that matters. Loose wording such as "I hope my sister uses this money for Max" would read as a wish in many settings. Montana tells the court to lean toward treating it as an enforceable trust, and it may look outside the document to find what you meant.

It ends when no covered animal is alive

The same subsection sets the end point: "The trust terminates when no living animal is covered by the trust." There is no fixed term. The trust runs as long as a covered animal lives.

The 21-year cap belongs to a different kind of trust

Subsection (1) covers a trust for a lawful noncharitable purpose with no definite beneficiary, which a trustee may carry out "for 21 years but no longer." Look at how the section is built. Subsection (1) is made subject to subsection (3). Subsection (2), the animal trust, is made subject to subsection (3) and to itself, and not to subsection (1). So the 21-year ceiling does not apply to a pet trust. The trust code repeats the pattern: MCA 72-38-409(1) caps other noncharitable trusts at 21 years, while MCA 72-38-408 carries no such limit.

The rules in subsection (3)

Subsection (3) applies to both honorary trusts and pet trusts. It does seven things.

  1. The money stays with the animal. Under (3)(a), except as expressly provided otherwise in the trust instrument, no principal or income may be converted to the trustee's use or to any use other than the trust's purposes or a covered animal's benefit. If you want to pay the trustee or the caregiver, say so in the document.
  2. Leftover property has a set order. Under (3)(b), the trustee transfers unexpended property first as the instrument directs. If the trust was created in a nonresiduary clause of your will or a codicil, it goes next under your will's residuary clause. If neither produces a taker, it goes to your heirs under MCA 72-2-721.
  3. The residuary clause counts as a future interest. Under (3)(c), for the survivorship rules of MCA 72-2-717, the residuary clause is treated as creating a future interest under the terms of a trust.
  4. Someone can enforce it. Under (3)(d), an individual designated in the trust instrument may enforce the intended use of the money. If you named no one, a court appoints an individual when someone applies.
  5. No court paperwork by default. Under (3)(e), no filing, report, registration, periodic accounting, separate maintenance of funds, appointment, or fee is required because of the trustee's role, unless a court orders it or your document requires it.
  6. A court can shrink an oversized fund. Under (3)(f), a court may reduce the amount transferred if it runs well beyond what the intended use requires. The reduction passes as unexpended trust property under (3)(b).
  7. A court fills a gap in trustees. Under (3)(g), if no trustee is designated or none is willing or able to serve, a court shall name one. A court may also move the property to another trustee to make sure the intended use is carried out, and may make other orders to carry out your intent.

One detail about heirs is worth knowing before you rely on the fallback. MCA 72-2-721 sends property to the people, "including the state," who would take your intestate estate under the law of your domicile, figured as if you died when the disposition takes effect. A surviving spouse who has remarried by then is not an heir. The Montana intestate succession guide explains who those heirs are.

What MCA 72-38-408 Says

The trust code section is shorter, and it differs from MCA 72-2-1017 in three places.

Which animals. Subsection (1) allows a trust for the care of "an animal alive during the settlor's lifetime." MCA 72-2-1017 speaks of a designated domestic or pet animal and has no lifetime requirement. MCA 72-38-408 reaches any animal but only one alive while you are. A puppy born after your death fits the words of neither section cleanly, so name the animals you mean to cover and say whether later animals count.

Who enforces. Subsection (2) lets a person appointed in the terms of the trust enforce it, or a person the court appoints if none is named. It adds a right MCA 72-2-1017 does not spell out: "A person having an interest in the welfare of the animal may request the court to appoint a person to enforce the trust or to remove a person appointed." A neighbor, a veterinarian, or a rescue group may be able to ask.

Where the excess goes. Subsection (3) limits trust property to its intended use, except to the extent a court finds the value exceeds the amount required. Unless the trust says otherwise, property not required for the intended use goes to the settlor if living, and otherwise to the settlor's successors in interest. MCA 72-2-1017 uses a different fallback order that runs through your will's residuary clause and then your heirs.

When the animal dies, subsection (1) ends the trust. For a trust covering more than one animal alive during your lifetime, it ends on the death of the last surviving animal.

How to Set Up a Montana Pet Trust

You can create the trust in your will or in a living trust.

  • In a will. The trust takes effect at your death and the money reaches it through probate. The will has to meet MCA 72-2-522: in writing, signed by you, and signed by at least two witnesses, unless it qualifies as a handwritten will. See Montana will requirements.
  • In a living trust. A pet trust inside a revocable trust can start working the day you die, or the day you become unable to care for the animal, without waiting on a court. MCA 72-38-402(1) requires capacity, an intention to create the trust, and a trustee with duties to perform. See how a Montana trust is set up and how to avoid probate in Montana.

A living trust also covers the stretch before death. If you might lose capacity first, pair it with a Montana power of attorney so someone can move money to the trust while you are alive.

Write a Trust That Satisfies Both Sections

Since Montana has two sections and no rule choosing between them, draft so both are met. Next steps:

  1. Name each animal and describe it (species, name, a microchip number if it has one). Say whether animals you acquire later are covered.
  2. Name a caregiver and a trustee. They can be the same person, but splitting the roles gives the animal a second set of eyes.
  3. Name an enforcer who is neither the trustee nor the person who takes the leftover money. Both sections let you appoint one, and naming one spares a court appointment.
  4. Name a successor for each role, so (3)(g) of MCA 72-2-1017 never has to send the question to a judge.
  5. Say whether the trustee and caregiver get paid, in plain words. Subsection (3)(a) of MCA 72-2-1017 bars paying the trustee from trust money unless the instrument expressly allows it.
  6. Name who takes the remainder. Both sections send leftover property where your document directs before any default rule applies, and the two default rules differ.
  7. Fund it to a reasonable figure. Estimate food, veterinary care, boarding, and the animal's expected lifespan. Both sections let a court cut a fund that exceeds what the animal needs.
  8. Decide on reports. Nothing is filed by default. If you want the trustee to send receipts to the enforcer each year, write that in.

For the rest of your plan, including guardians for children and health care documents, see the rest of a Montana plan and Montana guardianship planning.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are pet trusts legal in Montana?

Yes. MCA 72-2-1017(2) says a trust for the care of a designated domestic or pet animal is valid, and MCA 72-38-408(1) says a trust may be created for the care of an animal alive during the settlor's lifetime. Both sections are in the Montana Code Annotated 2025.

How long does a Montana pet trust last?

As long as a covered animal is alive. MCA 72-2-1017(2) ends the trust when no living animal is covered by it, and MCA 72-38-408(1) ends it on the death of the animal or, for a trust covering more than one animal, on the death of the last surviving one. The 21-year limit in MCA 72-2-1017(1) and MCA 72-38-409(1) applies to other noncharitable purpose trusts.

Who makes sure the trustee spends the money on my pet?

The person you name to enforce the trust. MCA 72-2-1017(3)(d) lets an individual designated in the trust instrument enforce the intended use, or an individual the court appoints if you named no one. MCA 72-38-408(2) adds that a person with an interest in the animal's welfare may ask the court to appoint an enforcer or remove one.

What happens to leftover money when my pet dies?

It goes where your document says. If it says nothing, MCA 72-2-1017(3)(b) sends it under your will's residuary clause when the trust was created in a nonresiduary clause of your will or a codicil, and otherwise to your heirs under MCA 72-2-721. MCA 72-38-408(3) sends property not required for the animal to you if living, and otherwise to your successors in interest.

Can a court cut down a large Montana pet trust?

Yes. MCA 72-2-1017(3)(f) lets a court reduce the amount transferred if it runs well beyond the amount the intended use requires, and the reduction passes as unexpended trust property. MCA 72-38-408(3) likewise limits the property to its intended use except to the extent a court finds the value exceeds the amount required.

Does a Montana pet trust have to file reports with the court?

Not by default. MCA 72-2-1017(3)(e) says that except as ordered by the court or required by the trust instrument, no filing, report, registration, periodic accounting, separate maintenance of funds, appointment, or fee is required because of the trustee's fiduciary relationship. You can require reports in your own document.

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Information current as of September 27, 2026

Settled Estate is not a law firm, and this content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in Montana can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.

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