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However, there is no statutory requirement in Ohio that a Settlor's signature must be witnessed or notarized for a trust agreement or trust amendment to be effective but it will make it much more difficult to withstand challenges by an unhappy beneficiary if the Settlor's signature is neither witnessed nor notarized.

A noncharitable irrevocable trust may be modified, but not to remove or replace the currently serving trustee, upon consent of all of the beneficiaries if the court concludes that modification is not inconsistent with a material purpose of the trust.

ORC 5804.11. The Probate Court can modify an irrevocable trust. This applies even if the change is contrary to the intent of the Settlor, if the Trustee and beneficiaries all agree so long as it is not inconsistent with a material purpose or continuation is not necessary to achieve any material purpose of the Trust.

In comparison, an irrevocable trust appears to be less flexible. Generally, a grantor can't make any changes to this type of trust. One trade-off is that an irrevocable trust provides more shelter for assets against taxes and creditors than a revocable trust.

Ohio law provides: The settlor may revoke or amend a revocable trust by substantial compliance with a method provided in the terms of the trust or, if the terms of the trust do not provide a method, by any method manifesting clear and convincing evidence of the settlor's intent? O.R.C. § 5806.02 (C).

In an irrevocable trust, all the assets are effectively transferred to a grantee, legally removing ownership rights from the grantor. This means that the terms cannot be changed, modified, or terminated without the named beneficiary's approval.