Perpetual Trusts
When he’s away on state business in New York or Chicago, Daugaard said, he sometimes takes time to meet with wealthy clients of the South Dakota trust industry. He said he thanks them for doing business in his state.
McDowell’s 1993 article publicizing South Dakota’s advantages helped him land a job at Citicorp, setting up trusts for the bank’s clients. As the lender started promoting South Dakota’s advantages nationally, Delaware passed a similar law allowing perpetual trusts.
Alaska was next, after a fishing trip there inspired a New York estate planning lawyer named Jonathan Blattmachr to draft the legislation. A half dozen states, including Nevada and New Hampshire, now jostle for the business of the super-rich.