Photo of Ruth Fortune

Ruth is an Associate in the firm’s Private Client Services Department.

Prior to joining Wiggin and Dana, Ruth was an associate attorney where she worked with clients to advise and implement estate plans and asset protection strategies for intergenerational wealth transfer. Ruth has also worked as a financial advisor creating and monitoring comprehensive financial plans for high net-worth families.

Ruth graduated cum laude from Baruch College and received her J.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Law where she served on the Connecticut Moot Court board. Ruth currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Estate and Business Planning Council (EBFC) of Hartford.

In a previous Wiggin and Dana advisory, we highlighted a new “decanting” statute in Connecticut. As described in that advisory, effective January 1, 2025, Connecticut will specifically authorize “decanting” the assets of an otherwise irrevocable trust into a new trust with improved terms. The statute outlines precisely what kinds of trusts can and cannot be

A directed trust is a sophisticated planning technique that divides the traditional duties of a trustee among more than one person or institution.  Unlike a standard trust with multiple co-trustees, all of whom would share the same duties, a directed trust makes each “trust director” responsible for a different type of task on behalf of