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V. RESULTING TRUSTS/LEGALLY BINDING AGREEMENTS A. Policy Rules 1. It is presumed that a resource owned by an individual is also available to him, unless there are circumstances which make the resource unavailable. 2. The terms of a divorce decree, will, deed, court order, resulting trust or legally binding agreement may cause a resource technically owned by an individual to be unavailable to him. 3. A resulting trust exists when a person has a resource in his own name but is holding it for the benefit of another person and he: a. Retains no legal interest in the resource, and b. Will not benefit from the disposal of the resource. 4. If the a/b or a person financially responsible for the a/b alleging that a resource is held in trust for someone else continues to retain a legal interest in the resource and/or will receive the proceeds from the disposal of the resource, it is not considered to be held in trust for someone else and is a countable resource. 5. If the a/b or a person financially responsible for the a/b claims a resource is not available because of a resulting trust/legally binding agreement, he must cooperate by presenting necessary documentary evidence to show that the resource is unavailable. 6. A legally binding agreement may be either a written or a verbal contract. The evidence must be sufficient to: a. Convince others of the validity of the agreement, b. Show that the agreement existed at the time of the purchase/deposit of the resource, and c. Show that the legal title holder holds the resource/property in trust for the party applying the purchase price or making the deposit. B. Procedures 1. When a resource is apparently owned by an individual who has applied for Medicaid, determine whether it may not be actually available to him because of a legally binding agreement or resulting trust. a. Written Contract (1) Review the contract and determine if it affects the availability of the 19