A definitions section that mostly points elsewhere
Part XII governs private foundation trusts and split interest trusts. This is the section that says what those are, and the striking thing about it is how little of the work Florida does.
(4) “Private foundation trust” means a trust, including a trust described in s. 4947(a)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code, as defined in s. 509(a) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(5) “Split interest trust” means a trust for individual and charitable beneficiaries that is subject to the provisions of s. 4947(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Section 736.1201, Florida Statutes.
Neither definition contains a Florida test. Whether a trust is a private foundation trust is a question of federal tax classification, and the answer comes from section 509(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, which defines private foundation by exclusion from the categories of public charity.
The same is true of charitable organization, defined as an organization described in section 501(c)(3) and exempt under section 501(a). Note that both limbs are required, described in the one and exempt under the other.
The practical consequence for anyone researching is direct. You cannot work out whether Part XII applies to a trust by reading chapter 736. You have to know its federal classification first, and that is a tax question.
The definition that moves
“Internal Revenue Code” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.
Section 736.1201(3), Florida Statutes.
Three words at the end do a great deal. As amended makes this a rolling reference, so the Florida statute incorporates federal law as it stands from time to time rather than as it stood in 2006.
Congress can therefore change what Florida law requires of a trustee under section 736.1204 without the Florida Legislature doing anything at all. That is a deliberate design choice, and the alternative would be worse. A statute frozen to a 2006 version of the tax code would drift out of alignment within a few years and would have to be amended constantly.
It does mean that a page like this one, or any secondary source, is describing a moving target, and that the federal provisions cited in this Part should be read as they stand today rather than as they may be described in older writing.
The one definition Florida wrote itself
“Delivery of notice” means delivery of a written notice required under this part using any commercial delivery service requiring a signed receipt or by any form of mail requiring a signed receipt.
Section 736.1201(2), Florida Statutes.
This is the only definition in the section that does not depend on federal law, and it is procedural rather than substantive. It matters because three sections of the Part turn on notice, namely section 736.1205, where a trustee must notify the Attorney General that the Part does not apply, section 736.1206, where notice precedes an amendment, and section 736.1208, where a release is delivered.
The requirement is a signed receipt, by commercial delivery service or by mail. Email will not do, and neither will ordinary first class mail, which is a notably stricter standard than the general notice provision in section 736.0109 allows for most purposes in the Code.
The same signed receipt mechanism appears in section 736.02025 for service of process in certain trust proceedings, which suggests the drafters reached for it whenever proof of receipt mattered.
No Florida court has cited this section
A search returns no citing documents at any precedential status. That is true of every section of this Part we have examined, so we verified the search itself before reporting it, by confirming that the same query form returns hits for sections known to have case law.
For a definitions section that borrows its content from federal law, judicial silence is close to inevitable. A dispute about whether a trust is a private foundation is a dispute with the Internal Revenue Service about section 509(a), not a dispute in a Florida court about section 736.1201.