- business trust
- Otherwise known as a Massachusetts trust or common-law trust. A form of business organization consisting essentially of an arrangement whereby property is conveyed to trustees, in accordance with the terms of an instrument of trust, to be held and managed for the benefit of such persons as may from time to time be the holders of transferable certificates issued by the trustees showing the shares into which the beneficial interest in the property is divided. Hecht v Malley, 265 US 144, 68 L Ed 949, 44 S Ct 462; an unincorporated business organization created by an instrument, by which property is to be held and managed by trustees for the benefit and profit of such persons as may be or may become the holders of transferable certificates evidencing the beneficial interests in the trust estate. 13 Am J2d Bus Tr § 1; a convenient method by which persons become associated for dealings in real estate, the development of tracts of land, the construction of improvements and the purchase, management and sale of properties. Morrissey v Commissioner, 296 US 344, 80 L Ed 263, 56 S Ct 289. An organization within the meaning of the Uniform Commercial Code; an association, for the purpose of taxation under the Internal Revenue Code, where created for the transaction of business. 13 Am J2d Bus Tr § 89.
Ballentine's law dictionary. Anderson, W.S.. 1998.