Trust Administration

If you’ve been named trustee of a loved one’s trust, you’ll be tasked with trust administration after their death. What is trust administration? Trust administration is the process of settling the trust and then distributing the assets to the listed beneficiaries.

Trust administration includes settling any debts, paying taxes, transferring property titles and any other administrative tasks that must be handled to close out or settle the estate of the person who has died. All of this must be done in accordance to the documents prepared by those who created the trust. In general, there are several steps that must be followed in any trust administration process.Trust administration is a complicated legal process that must be followed precisely, which is why the help of an experienced attorney can be highly beneficial.

Trust administration is unique to each trust. The role of the trustee will vary depending upon the wishes of the decedent and what is required by the trust documents. This generally includes the requirements to settle trust debts, protect all trust assets and to manage them to make sure none are lost, stolen, or destroyed. All of the assets have to be properly identified and property titles need to be legally obtained and transferred, as well as correctly sending notices to all beneficiaries. One of the more complicated tasks that must be taken care of during the trust administration process is to file the trust’s tax returns and pay the necessary taxes. It’s important to seek the help of a professional to make sure it’s done properly. Once the tax return for the trust is filed, you must pay the trust’s taxes.

This process will vary depending upon the trust instructions and assets, however, these general steps can help you to better understand the trust administration process and demonstrate how important it is to seek the help of an experienced attorney to help you complete the process legally and more easily.