What it means
The whole section is one sentence: a trust may be created only to the extent its purposes are lawful, not contrary to public policy, and possible to achieve. Every Florida trust passes through this gate, and only to the extent it passes does it exist.
“Only to the extent” does real work — an offending purpose does not automatically sink the whole instrument. The valid purposes stand while the unlawful or impossible ones fail.
- Three tests: lawful, not contrary to public policy, possible to achieve.
- A trust is valid only to the extent its purposes pass — partial failure does not void the rest.
- The section speaks to creation; a purpose that becomes impossible later is handled by judicial modification (§736.04113) or, for charities, cy pres (§736.0413).
How it plays out
We cite §736.0404 less in court than at the drafting table. Conditions that try to control marriages, punish relatives, or lock property into pointless uses invite challenges, and the challenge runs straight through this section. The other place it surfaces: purpose trusts with no human beneficiary — a mausoleum fund, a house-maintenance trust — where “possible to achieve” is really a funding question. A purpose the money cannot carry is a purpose a court can wind down.
Where this shows up
Pages on this site where § 736.0404 does real work:
Questions people ask
