Trust Administration and Your Duties as Trustee

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The private process of turning title to assets, filing and paying estate taxes to comply with Federal tax laws, notifying creditors, paying debt and providing accounting reports to beneficiaries is called Trust Administration. The trustee oversees this process to ensure that assets of the Trust are managed as set forth by the Trust document.

Being designated the trustee of a loved one’s Trust is usually considered a high honor because the trustor must place a high level of trust in the Trustee to ensure that the execution of the Trust Administration process goes smoothly. The trustor must also believe that that the Trustee inheriting these responsibilities executes each duty impartially, especially in distributing assets and income to beneficiaries.

Trust Administration Duties

Administration of a Trust varies depending on the complexity and instructions of a Trust. Annual taxes still have to be filed and paid; the trustee must provide ways to make the Trust a sustainable source of income by making prudent investments; and keep accounting records of all Trust expenditures and intake. These are not inherent proficiencies in most people. In fact, most people find these subject matters hard to understand.

Trust Administration Help

Administering a Trust is sometimes not easy, and usually requires the help of professionals such as CPAs and Estate Planning Attorneys. Because Trust Administration is a year round job, recruiting the help of an attorney and financial expert is recommended.

A qualified attorney can help the trustee create a Trust Administration Checklist to follow so that each step in the Trust Administration process is planned out accordingly.

A sample Trust Administration Checklist is available for download in this free, downloadable report, “Trust Administration: Prior Planning Prevents Problems.” This no obligation, free report is yours to learn more about trustee duties and Trust Administration. Drafted by some of the country’s industry leaders in Estate Planning, this report will teach you:

  • The different stages of Trust Administration
  • The responsibilities and liabilities of a trustee
  • How to create a Trust Administration Checklist
  • The meaning of common words and phrases used in Trust Administration
  • And how to navigate the complexities of Trust tax compliance issues

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