Florida Successor Trustee

Florida successor Trustee

A successor Trustee is the person (or institution) named to step in and administer a Trust when the original Trustee can no longer serve. Stepping in is a real legal undertaking — once you accept, you take on fiduciary duties to the beneficiaries — so it's worth understanding the role before you act.

Find out what your successor-trustee role requires.

Start the free role check

Accepting (or declining) the role

Acceptance can happen by signing on, or by acting as Trustee. If you do not want to serve, there are proper ways to decline before you take actions that signal acceptance — which is why understanding the rules early matters.

Accepting or declining trusteeship
§ 736.0701 ↗
A person accepts trusteeship by substantially complying with the trust's method, or by accepting property, exercising powers, or performing duties. Limited preservation acts may not constitute acceptance.
Cotrustees
§ 736.0703 ↗
Addresses how cotrustees act (often by majority), vacancies, inability to act, and dissenting-cotrustee protections.
Trustee compensation
§ 736.0708 ↗
If the trust does not specify, the trustee is entitled to reasonable compensation.

Accepting (or declining) the role

Accepting or declining trusteeship

Cotrustees

Trustee compensation

Related reading