Posts Tagged ‘Trusts’
A trustee’s duty to investigate conflicts of interest
Duty to Investigate: Section 2(d) of the UPIA directs, “A trustee shall make a reasonable effort to verify facts relevant to the investment and management of trust assets.” In response to this duty, a prudent trustee will investigate whether any conflicts of interest exist between the trust, the investment advisor, and the investment products or process the advisor has adopted.
Read MoreA Trustee’s duty to monitor the risk within the trust portfolio
Duty to Establish Risk Expectations: Section 2(b) of the Uniform Prudent Investor Act directs that “A trustee’s investment and management decisions respecting individual assets must be evaluated not in isolation but in the context of the trust portfolio as a whole and as a part of an overall investment strategy having risk [expectations] reasonably suited to the…
Read MoreA trustee’s duty to establish return objectives or “Don’t be a lemming”
Duty to Establish a Target Return: Section 2(b) of the Uniform Prudent Investor Act directs, “A trustee’s investment and management decisions… must be evaluated… as a part of an overall investment strategy having risk and return objectives reasonably suited to the trust.” A prudent trustee would not hire an employee without describing at some level…
Read MoreTrustee’s duty to develop an administrative plan or “If you don’t know where you are going you might end up somewhere else.”
Duty to Develop a Plan: Section 2(a) of the UPIA directs, “A trustee shall invest and manage trust assets as a prudent investor would, by considering the purposes, terms, distribution requirements, and other circumstances of the trust.” In response to this duty, a prudent trustee will develop an administrative plan that projects the income and…
Read MoreDuty to Prudently Administer or “Check, check, double check, recheck” (1 of 12)
Duty of Prudence: Section 2(a) of the Uniform Prudent Investor Act directs, “A trustee shall administer the trust as a prudent person would…” But how is one to know how a prudent trustee would act?
Read MoreIt’s harder to be a trustee than to go down steps on a pogo stick
The Problem: You are a trustee. You said “Yes” when a family member, close friend, or client asked you if you would serve as their successor trustee. Now, the settlor is dead, and you occupy the fiduciary office. And for that you will receive treasures in heaven… and consternation here on earth, because the beneficiaries…
Read MoreInvestment Advisor Annual Review (Duty to Monitor)
A trustee has a duty to act prudently when they delegate investment responsibilities to third parties.
Read MoreA Trustee’s Duties when the Portfolio has a Lower Return than Projected
A trustee has a duty to establish return objectives consistent with the trust purposes, terms, distribution requirements and other considerations.
Read MoreAnatomy of a Trustee Lawsuit
Twice in the last 30 days we have gotten calls from attorneys who are representing trustees being sued by disgruntled beneficiaries.
Read MoreThe Trustee’s Compliance Library
Trustees and beneficiaries don’t always see eye-to-eye on issues of trust administration and governance. For the most part, the reasons for these disagreements are divergent beliefs about responsibility, duty, fairness, and transparency. Then the attorneys are called and nobody wins. At the heart of all of these conflicts is a single issue–did the trustee act…
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