Decanting is a new statute in South Carolina that was effective January 1, 2014. The concept of decanting is codified at S.C. Code Section 62-7-816A. Technically speaking, decanting is the ability of a trustee to make a distribution from one trust to another trust - rather than to a beneficiary of the first trust. While this sounds quite mundane, it is quite a powerful concept because the second trust need not have identical terms as the first trust. This allows the trustee to modify a trust that is otherwise irrevocable. Decanting gets its name from the concept of pouring wine into a decanter (a new vessel) in order to improve the wine. The trustee of the original trust is pouring the assets of the original trust into a new vessel, the second trust in order to improve the trust.
