What’s a Revival Trust? 1 Michigan Man Did It
Ever heard of a “revival trust”? I’m sure most of us haven’t (although Stallone in the 1993 classic Demolition Man showed us the way, didn’t he?) – apparently being cryogenically frozen is still a thing (remember the Walt Disney rumor for years? Or Ted Williams, right?). All I know is that the rich aunt you thought was going to give you a ton of money may be putting it on ice (sorry, bad pun).
So what HECK is a Revival Trust?
The idea of being cryogenically frozen when you die has been gaining steam among rich people for years. But our friends at Bloomberg just did a big article on how financial planners are trying to figure out how to preserve your FORTUNE as well as your body. It’s called a revival trust.
But there’s a catch:
You can’t leave yourself money when you die. And most states have limits on how long trust funds can last. In a lot of states, it’s around 100 years. Florida’s is the longest at 1,000.
So now those planners are figuring out how to create something called a “revival trust.”
One estate lawyer said he’s worked with around 100 clients who want to be frozen. The first thing they’re worried about is having enough there to at least cover the thawing-out process. But waking up still rich is ideal. (and waking up like Sylvester Stallone with Wesley Snipes in a future without crime, only to enlist Sandra Bullock to help is going to be a problem…seriously, you gotta watch this movie).
Back to coming back after cryo freezing when you’re still rich.
It really gets complicated when you parse out the different ways you could be revived. Like, are you the same person if they only thaw out your brain? What if they just upload your consciousness to a computer? And do clones count? And does Walt Disney actually have a revival trust (the answer is no btw).
They talked to a 76-year-old guy in Michigan who’s trying to plan for life after death. He’s putting $100,000 in a revival trust, with the rest going to his daughter and a foundation he set up. Although the jokes on him, how much is $100 grand going to get you in 100 years? I’m guessing a gallon of milk. Get off my lawn.
So would you want a revival trust? And is it true that Scrooge McDuck has been frozen and thawed out at least 20 times?
