What is the name of the trust created in a will that provides income to the spouse for life but restricts the spouse's ability to redirect assets after death, commonly used in second marriages?

• A. Bypass trust
• B. Power of appointment
• C. A/B will
• D. QTIP trust

Answer: (D)

The concept being tested is the QTIP trust, which stands for Qualified Terminable Interest Property. In a testamentary QTIP trust, the surviving spouse is guaranteed an income from the trust for life, but the spouse usually has no power to redirect or control the trust assets after death. The remaining principal then passes to the designated beneficiaries—often the first spouse’s children—upon the surviving spouse’s death. This setup is especially common in second-marriage planning because it provides for the surviving spouse while preserving the decedent’s wishes for who ultimately inherits the assets.

Why this fits the scenario: it explicitly gives income to the spouse for life and restricts the ability to redirect assets after death by keeping the remainder fixed to chosen beneficiaries, with the arrangement typically funded or implemented through the will.

Other options don’t match these features as precisely: a bypass trust is primarily an estate tax strategy with a life interest for the spouse but not defined as a life-income trust that controls post-death remainder in this exact way; an A/B will is a method of dividing property in a will, not a trust that provides lifetime income to a spouse; a power of appointment is a grant of authority to designate beneficiaries, not a trust that provides life income with restricted post-death control.