# Trust Decanting: Definition and How It Works in California

> Trust decanting lets a trustee move assets from an existing irrevocable trust into a new trust with updated terms.

Source: https://ridleylawoffices.com/estate-planning-glossary-california/trust-decanting/

By Eric Ridley, attorney, Ridley Law. Updated September 2026.

**Trust decanting** is a trustee’s power to move assets from an existing irrevocable trust into a new trust with updated terms, without asking the original beneficiaries to agree to every change.

## How it works in California

California adopted the Uniform Trust Decanting Act, codified at Prob. Code, §§ 19501 through 19530, which sets out when and how a trustee can decant. [Trust decanting in California](https://ridleylawoffices.com/trust-decanting-california/) depends on the trustee’s discretion under the original trust and on notice to the people the statute requires.

How much a trustee can change depends on the discretion the original trust gives them over distributions. A trustee with broad discretion can generally decant into a trust with more flexible terms; a trustee bound to a narrow, fixed standard has less room to change the substance of the trust.

Decanting is not a way around the settlor’s basic intent. It is meant to fix drafting problems, adapt to a beneficiary’s changed circumstances, or update outdated administrative provisions, not to redirect who ultimately benefits.

## Why it matters

For example, a trust drafted decades ago with no provision for a beneficiary’s later disability can sometimes be decanted into a version that protects public benefits eligibility, without going back to court to reform the document.

## Common mistakes

Trustees sometimes assume decanting lets them change beneficiaries outright, when the statute limits how far a trustee can depart from the original distribution scheme. Others skip the notice the statute requires, which can undo the decanting later.

## Related terms

- [Fiduciary Duty](https://ridleylawoffices.com/estate-planning-glossary-california/fiduciary-duty/): the obligation a trustee owes when deciding whether to decant.
- [Irrevocable Trust](https://ridleylawoffices.com/estate-planning-glossary-california/irrevocable-trust/): the type of trust decanting usually modifies.
- [Living Trust](https://ridleylawoffices.com/estate-planning-glossary-california/living-trust/): often becomes irrevocable, and therefore eligible for decanting, at the settlor’s death.
- [Trustee](https://ridleylawoffices.com/estate-planning-glossary-california/trustee/): the only party with the power to decant.
- [Trust Protector](https://ridleylawoffices.com/estate-planning-glossary-california/trust-protector/): a person with limited powers over a trust, separate from the trustee.

Part of the [California estate planning glossary](https://ridleylawoffices.com/estate-planning-glossary-california/). For the full treatment, see [Trust Decanting in California: A Trustee’s Guide](https://ridleylawoffices.com/trust-decanting-california/).