Petition To Appoint Successor Trustee

For a revocable living trust, that Trustee is usually the person that created the trust.The successor trustee usually takes power when the person that created the trust either becomes incapacitated or has died. The Trustee only manages the assets that are owned by the trust, not assets outside the trust.

Can the Successor Trustee Be a Beneficiary of the Trust? It's perfectly legal to name a beneficiary of the trust (someone who will receive trust property after your death) as successor trustee. In fact, it's common.When Mildred dies, Allison uses her authority as trustee to transfer the trust property to herself.

Once you follow that directive, the Trustee must step down and a successor Trustee can be appointed.Once a Trustee resigns, then either the next person named would act, or maybe you can appoint someone new if the Trust terms allow you to do that. Either way, a new Trustee will be in office when a Trustee resigns.

Nolo's Living Trust does not currently allow you to name an institution as successor trustee. If you want to do so, you will need help from an attorney. Normally, your first choice as successor trustee should be a flesh-and-blood person, not the trust department of a bank or other institution.

When the grantor dies, the trust becomes irrevocable and management or distribution of the assets passes to a successor trustee. Most trusts name the successor trustee when the trust is established; however, if you need to change or add a successor trustee, you can do so by amending the document.

Generally speaking, a living trust's grantor (the person who created the revocable living document) may appoint or remove trustees during their lifetime without hiring an attorney. The grantor can accomplish this by either creating an amendment to it or by revoking the original document and creating a new trust.

Successor trustees have to willingly accept their role usually by signing a consent to serve or affidavit of appointment. If an existing trustee wishes to change their successor trustee, they must make an actual amendment to the trust. Most courts won't accept informal, self-made changes.

Can the Successor Trustee Be a Beneficiary of the Trust? It's perfectly legal to name a beneficiary of the trust (someone who will receive trust property after your death) as successor trustee. In fact, it's common.