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trustee duties

You need to choose trustees to manage the trust. If land is to be put into trust you will need at least two trustees. You should choose someone who is not too old, who you trust to carry out your wishes and who agrees they have the time to dedicate to the work involved. Trustees can retire when they no longer wish to act, and a replacement be appointed for them. You can decide in the Trust Deed who has the power to appoint a new trustee when this happens.

The duties of a trustee are fairly wide. A brief overview of their role can be summarised as the need to:

  • meet regularly to discuss issues connected to the trust and keep written records (minutes) of those meetings
  • manage the trust assets and ensure that yearly accounts are drafted.
  • invest the trust assets in accordance with the law governing this area. The trust deed can widen the powers given at law
  • make payments in accordance with the terms of the trust. Sometimes trustees have a discretion as to whether to make payments and they should ensure this discretion is exercised when dealing with distributions.
  • open the trust at the Inland Revenue, prepare yearly tax returns and pay the right amount of tax due on time
  • deal with the sale and reinvestment of the trust assets as and when necessary

You can appoint one or more of the Partners at Ridley and Hall to act as trustee(s) for your Trust if you wish. Alternatively, existing trustees can appoint Ridley and Hall as agents for them to assist with their duties as summarised above, or to obtain independent advice about those duties.