What Are Trust Fund Babies?

From a legal aspect, trust funds represent common law arrangements whereby individuals, known as the trustors or grantors, may create sustained benefits for another individual or organization, known as the beneficiaries. Named beneficiaries may be eligible to receive an income from the property, or even unrestricted access to the property, immediately following its establishment. Additionally, certain limitations may be imposed for the utilization of assets, such as age and withdrawal restrictions.

While common assumption remains that trust funds are strictly for the wealthy and their proverbial silver spoons, one may often be effectively leveraged for a large spectrum of incomes. In addition to cash, assets may include other financial resources such as property, stocks, and bonds. Unfortunately, in the less-than-stellar economic times at hand, the spotlight often falls on the loudest and most flamboyant high-spenders in the room.

In the past decade, for example, the world has become fascinated with the lives of beautiful, young "celebutantes," such as Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie. As such, the term "trust fund baby" has garnered a negative and derisive connotation often associated with the rich, the famous, and the falsely entitled. Irresponsible, unemployed, and essentially famous for their family's wealth, these socialites cloud the news headlines with their drunken benders, powerhouse spending, and promiscuous antics - ironically, without contributing anything of merit to society in return.

Often, in lieu of being reprimanded, these crass individuals are rewarded for their untoward behavior. Book deals (Nicole Richie's The Truth About Diamonds, Paris Hilton's Confessions of an Heiress), recording contracts, and outrageous television series (The Simple Life, for example, which ran for five contrived seasons) document and propagate their distorted and unhealthy perceptions of reality. Meanwhile, grossly commercialized networks such as MTV, as well as celebrity gossip sites on the Internet, laud their follies and thrust the importance of wealth and materialism upon the next generation of impressionable, naïve youngsters.

However, in what may be regarded as a staunch lesson in reality, following Paris Hilton's 2006 arrest for driving under the influence, it became highly publicized that her embarrassed grandfather, Barron Hilton, bequeathed 97% of his estimated $2.3-billion net worth to charity rather than to his outrageous family; more specifically, the money was pledged to his father's Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. Regrettably, these lessons in hard work and moral character were delivered a little too late to save her reputation. It is truly unfortunate that because of the wild antics of these few, privileged individuals, trust fund babies have become synonymous as cash cows - infamous as icons for the untalented and possessing degenerate moral compasses - rather than generous and contributing members of society.

Sources:

The Internet Movie Database

The Associated Press - Paris Hilton says DUI arrest 'was nothing'

Michelle Nichols, Reuters - Charity, Not Paris, Getting Hilton Fortune

Trust Law

What is a Trust Fund?