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Trusts and Estates

3rd Edition
Jeffrey Evans Stake | Christopher J. Ryan, Jr.
ISBN: 9798895452974
CasebookPlus ISBN: 9781628101287
Subject: Trusts And Estates
Format: Print - Hardbound
Page Count: 930
Copyright: 2026 | Status: In Stock
Other Formats Available
CasebookPlus option available

This title is a part of our CasebookPlus™ offering as ISBN 9781628101287. Learn more at Faculty-CasebookPlus.com.

Stake’s & Ryan's Trusts and Estates (3d Ed.) is designed to be a teacher-friendly casebook for a basic course in trusts and estates. What is teacher friendly about it? First, the book is not a hornbook or treatise and does not require the teacher to remember a lot of note material that is unimportant to teaching basic principles. It also includes portions of the UPC in the book rather than requiring another book for statutory materials, which is student-friendly as well. Second, it raises policy questions that students find interesting because the questions engage them as if they will be in a position to influence their state’s law on trusts and estates. Concerning social policy, this casebook does not assume that the goal of following the decedent's intent overrides other fairness concerns or efficiency. Third, it presents examples and problems that can be used to dig into the rules or can be ignored as the teacher sees fit. Fourth, the cases are interesting as stories of what can go wrong in families and what can go wrong in trust and estate practice. Stake's book can be covered in a 3-hour course or, by closer analysis of cases and problems, expanded to fill a 4-hour course. Fifth and finally, the third edition includes a teaching manual as well as an extensive set of 1000 PowerPoint slides for casebook adopters. Most of the slides are only text, but a few of the slides include graphics or suggestions for audio or video clips that fit with the material.


Imprint: West Academic Publishing
Series: American Casebook Series
Publication Date: 04/01/2026

Jeffrey Evans Stake, Indiana University School of Law - Bloomington

Christopher J. Ryan, Jr., Indiana University School of Law - Bloomington

CasebookPlus™

This title is available in our CasebookPlus format. CasebookPlus provides support beyond your classroom lectures and materials by offering additional digital resources to you and your students. Anchored by faculty-authored formative self-assessments keyed to our most popular casebooks, CasebookPlus allows students to test their understanding of core concepts as they are learning them in class — on their own, outside of the classroom, with no extra work on your part. CasebookPlus combines three important elements:

  • A new print or digital casebook
  • Access to a downloadable eBook with the ability to highlight and add notes
  • 12-month access to a digital Learning Library complete with:
Multiple-choice self-assessment questions, including:
  • Chapter questions keyed to the casebook
  • Black Letter Law questions (available in select subjects)
  • Subject area review questions for end of semester use
Essay and short answer questions with sample answers and expert commentary, in 1L and select upper-level subjects

Leading digital study aids, an outline starter, and audio lectures in select subjects

Students can still utilize CasebookPlus digital resources if they've purchased a used book or are renting their text by purchasing the Learning Library at westacademic.com.

With CasebookPlus, you can customize your students' learning experience and monitor their performance. The quiz editor allows you to create your own custom quiz set, suppress specific quiz questions or quiz sets, and time-release quiz questions. Additionally, the flexible, customized reporting capability helps you evaluate your students' understanding of the material and can also help your school demonstrate compliance with the new ABA Assessment and Learning Outcomes standards.

Compared to the second edition, the third edition

  • adds a new chapter covering transfer taxation (especially the federal gift and estate tax, the GST, and state transfer taxes)
  • adds discussion of recent probate litigation involving celebrity estates (e.g., Prince, Aretha Franklin, etc.)
  • expands and clarifies the text
  • corrects errors in the text
  • modifies existing problems to improve student comprehension
  • includes updated slides and adds a new adopter’s manual.

Learn more about this series.