What does it mean to be a Trustee in Florida?
Being a Trustee of a Florida trust, whether revocable or irrevocable, comes with a lot of duties. Here is some initial information regarding serving as the Trustee of a Florida trust as is contained in Florida Statutes 736.0701 – 736.0709.
To become the Trustee, you must either accept the trusteeship according to the terms of the trust. If the trust does not provide for a way to accept trusteeship, then acting as the Trustee (accepting trust property, exercising Trustee powers or any other action that shows acceptance of trusteeship) shall suffice to prove you have accepted the duty of being a Trustee. This is important because if you do not want to be the Trustee, then you want to make sure you do not act as a Trustee. However, you may act to protect trust property and not be deemed the Trustee, if you notify a qualified beneficiary shortly after acting to protect the property that you are declining trusteeship.
If more than one Trustee has been named to serve, the terms of the trust shall state how the voting on exercising trust powers is to take place. If the trust is silent as to voting, then the voting shall be by a majority vote of Trustees. However, a Trustee may properly delegate to another Trustee trust powers for that Trustee to exercise on their own. An example of this is if one Trustee is an investment advisor and one is a teacher, the teacher Trustee may delegate to the investment advisor Trustee the power to invest the trust assets. However, if the settlor of the trust intended for both Trustees to work together on investments, then the investment power may not be delegated.
The Trustee of a trust may always resign as well. To resign properly, the Trustee must give 30 days notice to all qualified beneficiaries, the settlor (if still living) and all co-Trustees (if any). The Trustee may also resign by petitioning a court to approve the resignation.
On the other hand, the Trustee of a trust may be removed by a beneficiary, settlor or co-Trustee petitioning the court for the removal of the Trustee. A Trustee may also be removed by other means if the terms of the trust allow for other means (such as a Trust Protector being able to remove a Trustee).
In either situation above, the former Trustee must still take actions to protect the trust property until the trust property has been handed over to the successor Trustee or other co-Trustee if that co-Trustee did not have the power to control that trust property. Again, using the example above, if the investment advisor Trustee is removed or resigns, they must act to protect the trust property until the accounts and all information is turned over to the teacher Trustee.
Lastly, a Trustee is entitled to “reasonable” compensation for their services. The compensation of the Trustee is determined according to the duties of the Trustee and the type of trust assets. Just like the compensation of a Personal Representative, the compensation of the Trustee can be increased or decreased by the court. So if the trust owns a business, the Trustee will be entitled to more compensation rather than if the trust only held cash. The Trustee, just as in any other fiduciary capacity, is entitled to reimbursement of any expenses that are reasonable and were paid by the Trustee personally.
To learn more about being a Trustee in Florida, please consult with our estate planning attorney at Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A. located in Jacksonville and Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
