When a current trustee is unable to serve, the vacancy is filled by a successor trustee.
What happens if a trustee is no longer able to carry out their trust responsibilities?
After the initial trustee passes away, or becomes incapacitated, someone else should be designated as the successor trustee. However, the successor trustee often does not know what exactly his or her duties are in many cases.
The Green Bay Gazette, in an article titled “Acting as a successor trustee,” recently discussed some of the important responsibilities and liabilities that come with the role of serving as a successor trustee.
Generally speaking, the successor trustee has to follow the mandates of the trust.
In some cases the successor trustee will dissolve the trust and distribute the assets as described in the trust. In other cases, the successor will be responsible for managing the trust and investing the trust assets for later distribution to beneficiaries.
The important thing to do is to read the terms of the trust carefully without delay. That way the successor trustee will know what the specific legal obligations are.
For most people it would be very beneficial to have the assistance of an experienced estate planning attorney, especially the one who prepared the trust appointing the successor. After all, that attorney is the one who knows best how to read the language of the trust. That attorney can help you understand what you need to do and, even more important, what not to do.
Reference: The Green Bay Gazette (November 24, 2014) “Acting as a successor trustee“
For more information on trusts and estate planning, please visit my estate planning website.
