Reasons for removing a trustee
They may reach the end of their term of office. They may choose to step down. Their circumstances may change in a way which stops them from continuing their role.
Ultimately, trustees can only withdraw money from a trust account for specific expenses within certain limitations. Their duties require them to comply with the grantor's wishes. If they breach their fiduciary duties, they will be removed as the trustee and face a surcharge for compensatory damages.
While an estate trustee is certainly permitted to withdraw from his or her obligations under a will, the process is not necessarily a simple one – even when the proceeding is non-contentious.
If the trust is irrevocable, you need to have the consent of all of the adult beneficiaries of the trust in order to resign. The law also allows you to petition the court to accept your resignation as trustee.
It can take up to a year or longer to remove a trustee from a trust. That said, if there are concerns that a trustee could cause harm to the trust while trustee removal litigation is taking place, then the court may suspend them until it can decide the case.
To act unanimously - Trustees must act unanimously unless the trust deed says otherwise. To act carefully and distribute assets correctly – for example, in a life interest trust, the trustees must distribute any income to the life tenant beneficiaries but still preserve the value of the capital for any remaindermen.
Serving as the trustee of a trust instills a person with significant power. They have access to all the trust assets, but with a catch: They can only use those assets to carry out the instructions of the trust.
Serving as an executor or trustee is a significant responsibility that requires careful consideration. While there are benefits, such as personal satisfaction and potential compensation, there are also drawbacks, including time commitment, emotional strain, and potential legal liability.
But generally, the trustee is entitled to use trust funds to pay for things like: Funeral and burial expenses for yourself or a trust beneficiary. Expenses related to properties included in the trust, such as repairs or property insurance. Repaying any debts owed by your estate when you pass away.
In general, the steps to this process are: The trustee must send a written notice to the beneficiary to vacate the real property. Under California law, if the beneficiary has been in possession of the property for less than a year, then a 30-day notice is sufficient.
One way to remove a trustee is to rely on an express provision in the trust instrument. This provision may either be a power of removal, or a provision for the automatic removal of a trustee.
A trustee typically has the most control in running their trust. They are granted authority by their grantor to oversee and distribute assets according to terms set out in their trust document, while beneficiaries merely reap its benefits without overseeing its operations themselves.
If You Decide Not to Take the Job as Trustee
If the trust document names you as the successor trustee and you don't want to serve, you need to formally resign, in writing. Notify each of the trust beneficiaries that you have done so.
As previously mentioned, trustees generally cannot withhold money from a beneficiary for no reason or indefinitely. Similarly, trustees cannot withdraw money from a trust to benefit themselves, even if the trustee is also a beneficiary.
Resolving Problems Among Co-Trustees
The trustees may agree to ask the court for instructions, or one trustee may appeal to the court to prevent the other trustee from acting. If disagreements happen frequently, one trustee may resign, or one may petition the probate court for removal of the other trustee.
Anyone 16 and over (18 for an Unincorporated Association or Charitable Trust) who is not 'disqualified' can be a Trustee. The reasons for disqualification were set down by the Charities Act 2011, and were designed to prevent people convicted of financial crimes, or who made serious financial errors, becoming trustees.
Depending on the complexity of the case, it may cost anywhere from a few thousand dollars to $100,000 or more to dispute the terms of a trust.
In other words, while the trustee has the legal authority to manage and control the assets, they do so not for their own benefit, but for the beneficiaries. The trustee has a fiduciary duty to act in the best interest of the beneficiaries when managing the property of the trust.
Under California law, embezzling trust funds or property valued at $950 or less is a misdemeanor offense and is punishable by up to 6 months in county jail. If a trustee embezzles more than $950 from the trust, they can be charged with felony embezzlement, which carries a sentence of up to 3 years in jail.
Most trusts include a provision that outlines how a trustee may resign. Usually, this procedure includes signing a Resignation to Serve as Trustee and also sending written notice and a report and account of their actions as Trustee to the trust beneficiaries.
The best chance you have to stop a trustee, to prevent that trustee from running away with the rest of the money, or losing the rest of the money is to get a court involved as soon as possible so that a court can put a freeze to those accounts, put a freeze to the trustee's actions, potentially remove the trustee out ...
The trustee can also request their own removal voluntarily if they believe they are not fit for the role. Essentially, anyone named in the trust document or (if all persons named are deceased) anyone who is a personal representative of the estate may request the removal.