How “State” is Defined - Commentary to Florida Trust Code

Legal Commentary on the Definition of “State”

Fla. Stat. § 736.0103(23) defines the term “state.” The text of the subsection reads:

“State” means any state of the United States and includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any territory or possession subject to the legislative authority of the United States.

Counterintuitively, the word “state” includes more than just states in the Florida Trust Code. The District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico are both mentioned by name as being “states” in the code. In addition, “any territory or possession subject to the legislative authority of the United States” is also considered a state. Thus, each of the following is a state under the code:

• American Samoa

• Baker Island

• Guam

• Howland Island

• Jarvis Island

• Johnston Atoll

• Kingman Reef

• Midway Islands

• Navassa Island

• Northern Mariana Islands

• Palmyra Atoll

• U.S. Virgin Islands

• Wake Island

United States military bases in foreign nations are likely not states, as that land is not United States soil. Unites States embassies, on the other hand, likely are states under the Florida Trust Code.

The United States claims at the moment that it has the right to make a claim to land in Antarctica but that it has yet to make any such claim. Thus, it is likely that no portion of Antarctica is currently a state under the definition above.

It is unclear whether Native American Indian reservations would be considered a state under the Florida Trust Code. The Uniform Trust Code explicitly includes “an Indian tribe or band recognized by federal law or formally acknowledged by a State” in its definition of “state”. However, the Florida Trust Code declined to use this portion of the definition, leaving reservations unaddressed.

History of the Definition of “State”

The term “state” has been consistently defined since the Florida Trust Code took effect in 2007. However, the placement of the definition within § 736.0103 has changed multiple times.

The definition was taken from the definition of “other state” in Fla. Stat. § 731.201(26), although it also resembles the definition of “state” in the Uniform Trust Code. However, as noted above, the Uniform Trust Code explicitly includes “an Indian tribe or band recognized by federal law or formally acknowledged by a State” in its definition, unlike the Florida Trust Code.

This article is part of the PTM Legal Commentary to the Florida Trust Code. Click here to navigate through the entire commentary.