SIXTH DIVISION
April 22, 2005

No. 1-04-2350

PRESIDING JUSTICE FITZGERALD SMITH delivered the opinion of the court:

This declaratory action involves approval of a trust account sought by the petitionertrustees, Brown Brothers Harriman Trust Company, LLC (hereinafter, Brown BrothersHarriman), Peter Babcock and Sheffield Phelps, and the objection raised by respondents, CharlesBennett and Gerald Bennett, that investment advisory and trustee fees had been improperlycharged against the trust income rather than the trust principal in violation of the Principal andIncome Act (hereinafter, the Act) (760 ILCS 15/1 et seq. (West 2002)). Respondents, who arethe executors of the estate of and the successors in interest to the income beneficiary of the trust,claimed that the charges harmed them by reducing the amount of income received by the estate. On cross-motions for summary judgment, the circuit court granted petitioners' motion and enteredjudgment in their favor, approving the accounting, and denied respondents' motion. Respondentsappeal from the denial of their motions for summary judgment and for reconsideration of thesame. On appeal, respondents contend that section 14 of the Act (760 ILCS 15/14 (West 2002))requires that the charges be divided between trust principal and income regardless of explicitlanguage in the trust granting the trustees discretion to determine the allocation of charges to thetrust income. We affirm.

BACKGROUND

John W. Stewart, who was the grantor of the trust agreement at issue, died on June 26,1976. Stewart's first wife, with whom he had four children, predeceased him. The children fromthat marriage are Philip B. Stewart, Patricia Stewart Phelps, Robert Forsythe Stewart, andCynthia Stewart Kaiser. Stewart's second wife, Varina Margaret Webb Stewart, known as"Marka," survived him for more than 20 years. Marka was the income beneficiary of the trustuntil her death on May 23, 2000. Respondents are Marka's two sons from a previous marriage.

On April 30, 1966, Stewart created a trust agreement between himself as grantor andtrustee and trustees Sheffield Phelps and M. Dutton Morehouse. The agreement was amendedthree times: in August 1968, in December 1972, and in January 1976. The December 1972agreement, which amended and restated the 1966 trust agreement, is the document relevant tothis appeal (hereinafter, the trust or the agreement).

Until his death in 1976, Stewart was one of the trustees of his trust. Stewart's son-in-lawSheffield Phelps and Morehouse also served as trustees during Stewart's lifetime. In 1983, BrianBerris was appointed as a trustee; he resigned as trustee in 2000 and was succeeded by petitionerBrown Brothers Harriman. Morehouse was succeeded as a trustee in 1991 by RodneyWaldbaum, who in turn resigned in 2000 and was succeeded by petitioner Peter Babcock.

In Article III.2(a), the trust provides that after Stewart's death, all the net income of thetrust is to be paid to Marka. It further provides, in Article V.1(g), that the trustees shall have thepower to exercise their discretion "to determine *** the allocation of apportionment betweenincome and principal of all receipts and disbursements."

At Stewart's death, the trust assets totaled more than $10 million, but they were decreasedby more than one-half in value by the payment of loans and other obligations. Marka received anaverage of more than $625,000 per year from the trust, for a total net income of more than $15million from the trust by the time of her death in 2000. At that time, the trust principal had grownto more than $49 million.

It is undisputed that all the trustees' fees and investment advisory fees (collectively, thefees) paid from Stewart's death in June 1976 to the date of Marka's death in May 2000 were paidfrom and allocated to the trust income rather than the trust principal.

According to Sheffield Phelps, the practice of allocating the fees to income began duringStewart's lifetime and the trustees continued that practice after Stewart's death. According toPhelps, Stewart was primarily responsible for the trust management from its creation in 1966 untilhis death; during that time, the trustee and investment advisory fees were charged to the trustincome with Stewart's knowledge and approval. Stewart directed the trustees to consider thegrowth of principal as well as the preservation of the principal and the production of income. Thetrustees considered the trust administration policies they followed, including the allocation of thefees, to be in keeping with Stewart's intentions.

In February 2000, following the retirement of one of the trustees, a release and approvalof the accounting of the 1966 trust was granted on Marka's behalf by Marka's attorney and agent,Ruth Rouss. Rouss signed the release under power of attorney for Marka.

Petitioners subsequently provided respondents with an accounting of the trust from June16, 1976, through May 23, 2000, i.e., for the entire period from Stewart's death through the dateof Marka's death.

In June 2002, petitioners filed a complaint for declaratory judgment, seeking approval oftheir accounting under section 2-701 of the Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/2-701 (West2002)) for the period of June 26, 1976, through May 23, 2000. Respondents objected to the factthat the trustees' and investment advisors' fees were paid against trust income. They claimed thatsuch allocation reduced the amount paid to the income beneficiary and that the fees should havebeen allocated equally between the trust principal and income.

Both parties ultimately filed motions for summary judgment. Petitioners supported theirmotion with an affidavit from Sheffield Phelps.

Following a hearing on the cross-motions on March 16, 2004, the circuit court issued awritten memorandum opinion and order denying respondents' motion for summary judgment andgranting petitioners' motion for summary judgment and approving the accounting.

In its written order, the court considered the pertinent statutory provisions of the Act andfound that, according to the plain language of the Act in both its earlier and current versions,⁽¹⁾ "therule that trustees' fees must be equally apportioned between income and principal can be changedin the trust document." The court found section 3(a) of the Act to be controlling.

The court then considered whether the trustees acted reasonably and in good faith inmaking their allocation of the trustees' and investment advisors' fees and found that they did. Inso finding, the court stated that the evidence established that Marka was paid the net income ofthe trust after allocation of the fees as mandated by the trust and that her comfortable support wasprovided for. Finally, in approving the accounting, the court found that at least some trustinformation was provided to Marka orally, and quarterly reports were sent to Marka's accountantor to Marka's daughter. The court found that respondents failed to allege that Marka Stewart wasin any way damaged by the trustees' failure to provide a regular accounting. The court approvedthe accounting of the trustees for the period of June 16, 1976, through May 23, 2000.

Respondents subsequently filed a motion to reconsider the judgment and accounting,which the court denied on July 2, 2004. Respondents now appeal the orders granting petitioner'smotion for judgment and an accounting and denying their motions for summary judgment andreconsideration.

DISCUSSION

On appeal, respondents first urge this court to adopt a construction of section 14 of theAct that would require the fees at issue to be allocated equally to the trust income and the trustprincipal.

Summary judgment is appropriate where the pleadings, depositions, affidavits, admissions,and exhibits on file, when viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmovant, show that there isno genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as amatter of law. 735 ILCS 5/2-1005(c) (West 2002); Busch v. Graphic Color Corp., 169 Ill. 2d325, 333, 662 N.E.2d 397 (1996). The standard of review on an appeal from a grant of summaryjudgment is de novo. Busch, 169 Ill. 2d at 333. Moreover, " 'the interpretation of statutoryprovisions is traditionally a question of law [citation] to which a deferential standard of review isinapplicable.' " In re Estate of McInerny, 289 Ill. App. 3d 589, 596, 682 N.E. 2d 284 (1997),quoting Mellon Bank, N.A. v. Midwest Bank & Trust Co., 265 Ill. App. 3d 859, 866, 638 N.E.2d640 (1993). Accordingly, as respondents appeal from a grant of summary judgment and theyraise an issue of statutory interpretation, our review is de novo.

I

Respondents contend that a provision in the trust agreement granting the trustees thediscretion to allocate the fees against the trust income rather than the trust principal is contrary tothe requirements of section 14 of the Act. Respondents assert that Illinois courts have providedlittle guidance on the application of section 14 and, for that reason, they look for such guidance tocourts in other jurisdictions which have addressed the allocation of fees to trust income and trustprincipal. Respondents rely upon American Security & Trust Co. v. Frost, 117 F.2d 283 (D.C.Cir. 1940), for their position that this court should adopt a construction of section 14 that wouldrequire the fees to be allocated equally to income and principal regardless of the grantor'sexpressed intent.

Petitioners counter that reliance on Frost, or authority from any other jurisdiction, ismisplaced because Illinois law is clear. Rather, petitioners assert, respondents incorrectly focus entirely on section 14. However, they contend that section 3, which provides that the grantor'sintent be followed, controls the disposition here instead of section 14.

Section 14 of the Act addresses charges against income and principal. 760 ILCS 15/14(West 2002). The section provides that "one-half of the regular compensation of the trustee,attorney, investment counsel, custodian or accountant, subject to paragraph (l) of subsection (c)"shall be made against income. 760 ILCS 15/14(a)(6) (West 2002). Paragraph (1) of subsection(c) provides that the following charges shall be made against principal:

"one-half of the regular compensation of the trustee,attorney, investment counsel, custodian or accountant shall be paidout of principal, provided that, if in the judgment of the trustee, thecharging of a part or all of that portion of such compensation toprincipal is impracticable because of the lack of sufficient principalcash and readily marketable intangible personal property, orinadvisable because of the nature of the assets, that part or all ofsuch compensation shall be paid out of income." 760 ILCS15/14(c)(1) (West 2002).

See also Ill. Rev. Stat. 1977, ch. 30, par. 172.

However, section 3(a) provides that the Act governs "the ascertainment of income and principal and theapportionment of receipts and expenses in all cases where a trust isestablished unless otherwise stated hereinafter, to the extent notinconsistent with the provisions of the instrument." 760 ILCS15/3(a) (West 2002).

See also Ill. Rev. Stat. 1967, ch. 30, par. 160; Ill. Rev. Stat. 1977, ch. 30, par. 160.

We agree with petitioners that section 3 of the Act, which addresses the scope of the Actand the rules of administration, controls the disposition here. Section 3(a) of the Act clearlyprovides that the apportionment of charges to trust income and principal, which might otherwisebe subject to the allocation scheme in section 14, may be changed in the trust document. First,section 3(a) makes conditional the authority of the Act concerning the allocation of certainexpenses to income or principal by stating: "This Act governs the ascertainment of income andprincipal and the apportionment of receipts and expenses in all cases where a trust is establishedunless otherwise stated hereinafter, to the extent not inconsistent with the provisions of theinstrument." (Emphasis added.) 760 ILCS 15/3(a) (West 2002). Therefore, under section 3(a),the Act governs such allocation only to the extent that the Act is "not inconsistent with" theprovisions of the trust instrument.

The primacy accorded the provisions of the trust instrument itself is further emphasized insection 3. Section 3(a) next explicitly provides that the creator of the trust may determine theapportionment of expenses to income or principal:

"A person establishing a trust may make provision in the instrumentfor the manner of ascertainment of income and principal and theapportionment of receipts and expenses or grant discretion to thetrustee to do so and such provision, where not otherwise contraryto law, shall control notwithstanding this Act." 760 ILCS 15/3(a)(West 2002).

Thus, section 3(a) provides the authority for trustees to exercise discretion concerning theallocation of expenses to income or principal where such discretion has been granted by theperson establishing the trust. Section 3 reiterates the primacy of the provisions of the trustinstrument over the provisions of the Act by stating that the discretion granted to the trusteesshall control. Moreover, this authority provided in section 3(a) for the trustees' discretion tocontrol questions of allocation is not limited to one specific section of the Act. Rather, it extendsto the entire Act: "A person establishing a trust may make provision in the instrument for themanner of ascertainment of income and principal and the apportionment of receipts and expensesor grant discretion to the trustee to do so and such provision *** shall control notwithstandingthis Act." 760 ILCS 15/3(a) (West 2002).

The next subsection of 3 further declares the primacy of the trust instrument. Subsection(b) of section 3 provides that the administration of the trust, with respect to the allocation ofexpenses to principal or to income, is to be conducted as the terms of the trust instrument dictate. Here again, the language of the Act clearly provides that the terms of the trust instrument controlcontrary statutory provisions, stating:

"A trust shall be administered with due regard to therespective interests of income beneficiaries and remaindermen. Atrust is so administered with respect to the allocation of receiptsand expenses if a receipt is credited or an expense is charged toincome or principal or partly to each:

(1) in accordance with the terms of the instrument,

notwithstanding contrary provisions of this Act[.]" (Emphasisadded.) 760 ILCS 15/3(b)(1) (West 2002).

The remaining paragraphs of subsection 3(b) address additional circumstances underwhich the Act would not control. The subsection next provides that the trust be so administeredas to allocation of charges to income or principal:

"in the absence of any contrary terms of the instrument ***or, if the trustee in the trustee's discretion determines thatapplication of the provisions of this Act would result in a substantialinequity to either the income beneficiaries or the remaindermen, inaccordance with what is reasonable and equitable in view of theinterests of those entitled to income as well as those entitled toprincipal." (Emphasis added.) 760 ILCS 15/3(b)(2) (West 2002).

Finally, subsection 3(b) provides that, if neither of the rules of administration is applicable, i.e., ifthe allocation of expenses to principal or income is neither in accordance with terms of theinstrument nor to be done in the absence of any contrary terms of the instrument, the trust shall beadministered "in accordance with what is reasonable and equitable in view of the interests of thoseentitled to income as well as those entitled to principal." 760 ILCS 15/3(b)(3) (West 2002).

Next, subsection 3(c) provides:

"If the instrument *** gives the trustee discretion increditing a receipt or charging an expense to income or principal orpartly to each, no inference of imprudence or partiality arises fromthe fact that the trustee makes an allocation other than inaccordance with a provision of this Act or determines not to do so." 760 ILCS 15/3(c) (West 2002).

Thus, this subsection of 3 again emphasizes the primacy of the trust instrument, or morespecifically, a grant of discretion to the trustees provided within the instrument, over the Act. Thefinal subsection, which addresses the timing of the allocation of expenses and receipts, alsoprovides that the trustee may exercise discretion in such determination:

"To the extent not otherwise provided in the instrument orthis Act, receipts shall be credited *** and expenses shall becharged *** except that the trustee may elect to credit receipts andcharge expenses in any other reasonable manner that complies withthe provisions of subsection (b) and is not inconsistent with theterms of the instrument." (Emphasis added.) 760 ILCS 15/3(d)(West 2002).

Therefore, as section 3 in its entirety makes clear, the provisions of the Act concerning theallocation of expenses to income or principal are not paramount. Rather, throughout section 3repeated provision is made for the terms of the trust instrument itself or the discretion of thetrustees, when granted in the instrument, to control such allocation. Thus, the section of the Actwhich defines its scope does so by providing that the trust instrument itself controls in the eventof a conflict with provisions of the Act.

Here, the trust agreement specifically grants discretion to the trustees, and their exerciseof such discretion would control the allocation of charges to income or principal without resort tothe provisions of section 14 of the Act. The primacy accorded in section 3 of the Act to the trustinstrument, and, by extension, the intent of the grantor as expressed in the instrument, isconsistent with the well-established principles of trust construction.

In construing a trust, the court's primary concern is to determine the grantor's intent and togive effect to that intent if it is not contrary to public policy. Harris Trust & Savings Bank v.Donovan, 145 Ill. 2d 166, 172, 582 N.E.2d 120 (1991); Brown v. Ryan, 338 Ill. App. 3d 864,871, 788 N.E.2d 1183 (2003). The court applies the same rules of construction in construing atrust as it does in construing a will. Donovan, 145 Ill. 2d at 172; First National Bank of Chicagov. Canton Council of Campfire Girls, Inc., 85 Ill. 2d 507, 513, 426 N.E.2d 1198 (1981). Theentire document is to be considered in ascertaining the testator's intent. Donovan, 145 Ill. 2d at172; First National Bank of Chicago, 85 Ill. 2d at 513-14. In determining that intent, the wordsused are given their plain and ordinary meaning. Donovan, 145 Ill. 2d at 172; see also Eychanerv. Gross, 202 Ill. 2d 228, 256, 779 N.E.2d 1115 (2002). Where the language used in the trust isunambiguous and clear, the intent must be ascertained from that language. Brown, 338 Ill. App.3d at 871; In re McInerny, 289 Ill. App. 3d at 597-98.

The language used in the trust here is clear and unambiguous. The trust contains thefollowing grant of discretion to the trustees:

"1. The trustees shall have the following powers, and any othersthat may be granted by law, with respect to each trust hereunder, tobe exercised as the trustees in their discretion determine to be to thebest interests of the beneficiaries:

***

(g) To determine the manner of ascertainment of incomeand principal, and the allocation or apportionment between incomeand principal of all receipts and disbursements; and to select anannual accounting period[.]" Article V.1(g).

This provision in the trust clearly and unambiguously gives the trustees the discretion to allocatecertain charges to income or principal.

Respondents ignore this clear grant of discretion given the trustees to determine theallocation of the fees to income. Rather, they argue that Stewart did not term the discretion"absolute" or "uncontrolled" and that he did not explicitly direct the trustees how to allocate theirfees. We find no merit in this argument; presumably, if explicit direction were given as to aparticular allocation, the grant of discretion would be meaningless.

Respondents further argue that an interpretation of the trust acknowledging the grant ofdiscretion is contrary to the Act. However, they rely upon only a partial and selective reading ofsections 3(b)(2) and 14(c)(1) of the Act. Respondents claim that section 3(b)(2) (directing that itsapplication not be conducted in a manner resulting in inequity to the income beneficiaries) and thelanguage of Article III of the trust, which allows the trustees, under certain circumstances, to payMarka principal of the trust estate, demonstrate that Stewart "favored the income beneficiary,"i.e., Marka, and require the trustees to exercise their discretion in a manner favorable to her. Such exercise, they claim, is governed by section 14(c), which requires the trustees to allocateone-half of the fees to principal.

However, respondents' argument is flawed in several ways. First, respondents rely on apart of section 3 that addresses the trustees' determination made in exercise of their discretion thatapplication of the statute "would result in a substantial inequity." 760 ILCS 15/3(b)(2) (West2002)). In so doing, respondents appear to implicitly concede that the trustees properly mayexercise their discretion concerning the allocation of charges. Such concession, however, wouldnot compel the application of section 14(c) in the manner that respondents claim.

Next, respondents rely on a part of Article III.2(b) of the trust that contains permissivelanguage providing:

"After the death of the Grantor, whenever the trustees determinethat the income of the Grantor's said wife from all sources knownto the trustees is not sufficient for her comfortable support, thetrustees may pay to her, or use for her benefit, so much of theprincipal of the trust estate as the trustees determine to be requiredfor that purpose." (Emphasis added.)

The permission to pay Marka from the principal of the trust depends, however, on the trustees'determination "that the income of the Grantor's said wife [, i.e., Marka,] from all sources knownto the trustees is not sufficient for her comfortable support." No such determination was evermade. Finally, in asserting that the trustees were required to exercise their discretion in a mannerfavorable to Marka, respondents then illogically claim that apparently such discretion would begoverned by section 14(c) of the Act.

Respondents ignore entirely, however, the provisions in section 3(a), discussed earlier,that the grantor may grant discretion to the trustees to allocate charges to income or principal andthat such grant of discretion controls:

"A person establishing a trust may make provision in the instrumentfor the manner of ascertainment of income and principal and theapportionment of receipts and expenses or grant discretion to thetrustee to do so and such provision, where not otherwise contraryto law, shall control notwithstanding this Act." 760 ILCS 15/3(a)(West 2002).

Respondents' further claim that the trust principal always had sufficient cash to pay one-half of the fees ignores the fact that, under the terms of the trust instrument, the trustees were notrequired to pay one-half or any portion of the fees from the trust principal. Moreover, even ifsection 14 of the Act were applicable here--which it is not--provision is made in that section alsofor the exercise of discretion in the allocation of charges to income or principal. Section 14(c)provides an exception to the requirement that one-half of the trustees' and investment advisors'fees be charged against the trust principal; such exception is based on the determination of thetrustee that such allocation would be impracticable or inadvisable: "One-half of the [fees] *** shall be paid out of principal,provided that, if in the judgment of the trustee, the charging of apart or all of that portion of [the fees] *** to principal isimpracticable because of the lack of sufficient principal cash andreadily marketable intangible personal property, or inadvisablebecause of the nature of the assets, that part or all of suchcompensation shall be paid out of income." (Emphasis added.) 760ILCS 15/14 (c)(1) (West 2002).

Thus, even under section 14 of the Act, the trustees would still be accorded the discretion todetermine whether an allocation of charges to the trust principal was inadvisable. While it is notdisputed that there would have been sufficient cash in the trust principal to pay the fees, again, theallocation of one-half of the fees to principal was not required because, as discussed earlier,section 14(c)(1) does not control. Rather, where the trust instrument contains the explicit grantof discretion to the trustees to determine the allocation of the fees to either income or principal, asthe trust does here, the instrument controls. See 760 ILCS 15/3(a) (West 2002).

Finally, respondents' reliance upon Frost, 117 F.2d 283, is entirely misplaced. Frost hasno impact on our decision as it does not concern the application of Illinois law and is not bindingupon this court. Further, the situation in Frost, where the will directed distribution but was silentas to what constituted the corpus or income, is inapposite. Here, on the other hand, the trusteeswere given a clear grant of discretion in the trust to determine the allocation of the fees to incomeor principal.

For all the above-stated reasons, the circuit court properly found that section 3(a) of theAct applies to the apportionment of expenses at issue and, thus, that Stewart's grant of discretion,made in Article III.1(g) of the trust, to the trustees to allocate the fees to income is controlling.

II

Respondents also contend that the trustees abused their discretion in allocating the fees toincome. They assert that, over the 24 years at issue (1976-2000), the trustees disregarded thebest interests of the income beneficiary, Marka, and their allocation of the fees to trust incomewas not justified either by reliance upon Stewart's own actions as trustee or upon the claimedincome tax benefits of such allocation to Marka.

Respondents' abuse of discretion argument is made primarily in generalities. Whilerespondents are correct in stating the general principles that a trustee owes a fiduciary duty ofloyalty and fair dealing and good faith (see, e.g., Mucci v. Stobbs, 281 Ill. App. 3d 22, 31, 666N.E.2d 50 (1996)), they fail to cite anything in the record which would establish that the trusteesfailed to act in good faith. Respondents do specifically claim that the trustees failed to producewritten evidence that they ever disclosed to Marka the allocation of all fees to income or that theyever issued a single current account.

However, in making this claim, respondents ignore substantial and undisputed evidence inthe record that Marka was frequently and adequately informed of the accounting. First andforemost, respondents ignore the fact that Marka's agent, under power of attorney for her,executed a release and approval of accounts through the end of January 2000. In the release,Rouss stated that "the current income beneficiary of the Trust has examined the statements andaccountings of the trustees for all relevant periods up and through January 31, 2000, and has fullinformation and knowledge of all of the assets, income, expenditures and distributions madeduring the term of the trust and finds all of them to be true and correct and in accordance with theterms of the Agreement and approves such statements and accountings." Respondents object intheir reply brief to consideration of the release, which they claim is invalid; because they did notpreviously raise this point, however, it is deemed to be waived. See 188 Ill. 2d R. 341(e)(7).

Further, according to Phelps' undisputed affidavit and deposition testimony, Marka wasmade fully aware of all information concerning the income investment distributions of the trust byquarterly reports. Phelps testified that, eventually, Marka did not wish such to receive thereports, which the trustees then sent to Marka's accountant and, subsequently, to Rouss, Marka'sagent.

Moreover, respondents' argument that Stewart's own actions as trustee provide nojustification for the trustees' actions is, in large part, illogical. They claim that Stewart, as grantor,was not a fiduciary and he had complete discretion as to all aspects of the trust, but they assertthat Stewart's reasons for his actions as trustee should not be viewed by the trustees indicative ofhis intent. To that end, respondents claim that the Act does not allow trustees to delegate theirduty to the grantor, "especially when he is dead." Rather, respondents assert, the trustees arerequired to make independent judgments based upon legally cognizable grounds instead of thegrantor's actions or intent. Yet, it is just that exercise of discretion--the allocation of charges toincome--that respondents argue against.

The exercise of discretion by the trustees is not subject to interference by the court absentproof of fraud, abuse of discretion or bad faith. In re McInerny, 289 Ill. App. 3d at 600. Absentactions by the trustee that are "outside the bounds of reasonable judgment," a court cannotsubstitute its judgment for the trustee's judgment. In re McInerny, 289 Ill. App. 3d at 600. Again, as we have already stated, respondents have not supported their claims of bad faith orabuse of discretion with any basis in the record; rather, they rely upon their own conclusoryassertions.

Finally, respondents' claim that the income tax benefits to Marka did not justify thetrustees' allocation of fees to income also rests solely on respondents' own assertions andinterpretations of certain sections of the Internal Revenue Code. However, under section 3(c) ofthe Act, where the trustees are given such discretion over the allocation of charges, no inferenceof imprudence or partiality arises from their exercise of discretion. 760 ILCS 15/3(c) (West2002). Therefore, we find this claim lacking in merit. Again, given the uncontroverted evidencein the record that the trustees fulfilled their duties and informed Marka, directly or indirectly, ofthe accounting, we reject respondents' claims that the trustees abused their discretion indetermining the allocation of fees.

CONCLUSION

Therefore, for all the reasons stated above, we find the grant of discretion to the trustees,which was made in the trust and which allows the trustees to determine the allocation of chargesto income, controls the disposition under section 3(a) of the Act. We further find the record doesnot support the assertions that the trustees abused their discretion. Accordingly, we affirm thejudgment of the circuit court, granting petitioners' motion for summary judgment and accountingand denying respondents' motions for summary judgment and reconsideration.

Affirmed.

McNULTY and TULLY, JJ., concur.

1. The circuit court cited the earlier versions of the statutory sections relied upon by bothparties, Ill. Rev. Stat. 1970, ch. 30, par. 172, Ill. Rev. Stat. 1967, ch. 30, par. 160, and Ill. Rev.Stat. 1977, ch. 30, par. 160, and found the relevant provisions in the current and earlier versionsof the statute to be essentially the same.