论信托文件中免责条款的效力——美国法的经验和中国法的借鉴

美国法院在判定信托文件中免责条款效力时,主要考察三个方面:受托人违反信托的情形是否在信托文件规定的免责范围内;免责条款是否违法;免责条款制定过程中,受托人是否滥用了委托人对他的信任。考察免责条款是否违法,关键是确定委托人设定受托人义务的自由边界,其实质是探讨信托法上有关受托人义务的规定究竟是任意性规定还是强制性规定。我国《信托法》没有任何关于信托文件免责条款效力的规定。因此,我国信托法在立法及司法上应借鉴美国法的有益经验。

Study on the Validity of the Exoneration Clause in Trust Instruments

While deciding the validity of the exoneration clause in trust instruments,the American courts put emphasis on the following three questions:first,whether trustees' breach of trust falls in the exoneration clause provided for by the trust instruments;second,whether the exoneration clause is lawful;and third,whether the exoneration clause was drafted or caused as an abuse of a fiduciary or confidential relationship by the trustee.When deciding whether the exoneration clause is lawful,the key question is to d...