Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Florida
Trustee Liability
In the event that successor trustees voluntarily step down and are replaced are they absolved of liability for activities for the period that they were trustees; particularly because during their tenure a complete accounting was never provided to beneficiaries?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Trustee Liability
DISCLAIMER: No attorney-client relationship is formed with this correspondence, nor does any attorney-client privilege attach unless and until a signed retentionship agreement is entered into between the parties. Not legal advice. Seek local qualified legal counsel.
The short answer is no. Trustees serve in a fiduciary capacity and may be removed for a breach of that duty. Moreover, a demand for an accounting of disbursement and use of the funds entrusted to them during their tenure should be made, and if a breach is established, recoupment of those funds by way of 'surcharge.'
Otherwise, any trustee could spend the res into oblivion and bail just before the heat came on. Now would that seem fair to the trust beneficiaries? Of course not.
Re: Trustee Liability
Probably not. A trustee is foolish to accept trusteeship without an audited accounting from his or her predecessor. Do you wish to employ me?
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