The Weekly Scenario: The Primary Duties of a Trustee

Question:  What are the primary duties of my Trustee?

Answer: A Trustee has the legal duty to carry out the directions set forth in your trust.  As a fiduciary, the Trustee cannot derive personal benefits from the assets he is entrusted to manage. If the Trustee does not follow the directions set forth in the trust, the Trustee can be subject to personal liability.

Some of the duties of the Trustee include taking a complete inventory of the assets when he or she begins to act as Trustee; obtaining a tax identification number for the trust; determining values of the assets in the trust, if necessary; investing the money in the trust for the trust beneficiaries; paying expenses of the trust; preparing accountings for the beneficiaries of the trust; preparing tax returns for the trust; and distributing the assets in accordance with the terms of the trust.

Comment: It would be exhausting to come up with all the duties of a Trustee. The Trustee really has to carry out the wishes of the Settlor of the trust. It can be helpful if the Settlor of the trust is fairly specific about his intentions and give guidelines to the Trustees of these intentions.