Le texte intégral de ce guide est en anglais ; le résumé ci-dessus est dans votre langue. Les résumés des lois et l'anglais restent la source de référence.
Closing · 6 min de lecture
The routes to termination
Beyond the instrument's own terms, the Trust Law provides several. If all beneficiaries of an irrevocable trust consent, they may petition the court to modify or terminate it, unless continuing it is necessary to carry out a material purpose and the court weighs the reason as §15403 describes. On a trustee's or beneficiary's petition, the court may modify or terminate a trust when circumstances the settlor did not know of or anticipate would defeat or substantially impair its purposes (§15409).
Where the principal has become too small for the cost of administration, the court may terminate or modify the trust (§15408(a)) — and where the principal's fair market value does not exceed $100,000, the trustee has the power to terminate it (§15408(b)), distributing as §15410(e) describes.
The reserve and the distribution
At termination the property is disposed of as §15410 directs — for most trusts, as the instrument provides. Before distributing, the trustee may keep a reserve for reasonably anticipated expenses, including taxes, debts, trustee and accounting fees and the costs of administration, and may withhold a portion reasonably in dispute (§16004.5(b)).
The final account
§16062 has the trustee account at the termination of the trust, with the contents §16063 lists. The receipt of that account by each beneficiary starts the three-year period for claims it adequately discloses (§16460).
Releases and the record
A distribution the instrument requires may not be conditioned on the beneficiary's release of the trustee (§16004.5(a)), though the trustee may seek a voluntary release (§16004.5(b)(2)). Receipts and releases are documents whose effect depends on what was disclosed; preparing them is the kind of task many trustees bring to a licensed California attorney of their choosing. The complete record — notifications, accounts, receipts — is the trustee's protection long after the last distribution.
Les textes de loi, mot pour mot
Modification or termination by all beneficiaries' consent
Prob. Code §15403 ↗Explication claire et simple ; le texte intégral de la loi n'est pas encore attesté dans notre bibliothèque. Consultez la loi officielle via le lien ci-dessus.
Trust uneconomic to administer
Prob. Code §15408 ↗Explication claire et simple ; le texte intégral de la loi n'est pas encore attesté dans notre bibliothèque. Consultez la loi officielle via le lien ci-dessus.
Modification or termination for circumstances the settlor did not anticipate
Prob. Code §15409 ↗Explication claire et simple ; le texte intégral de la loi n'est pas encore attesté dans notre bibliothèque. Consultez la loi officielle via le lien ci-dessus.
Disposition of trust property on termination
Prob. Code §15410 ↗Explication claire et simple ; le texte intégral de la loi n'est pas encore attesté dans notre bibliothèque. Consultez la loi officielle via le lien ci-dessus.
Questions fréquentes
Can a California trustee end a small trust?
Where the principal's fair market value does not exceed $100,000, the trustee has the power to terminate the trust (§15408(b)); above that, the court may terminate or modify an uneconomic trust on petition (§15408(a)).
Can the beneficiaries agree to end a trust?
All beneficiaries of an irrevocable trust may, by consent, petition the court to modify or terminate it, unless continuing it is necessary to a material purpose as §15403 describes.
Does the trustee have to give a final account?
Yes: §16062 provides for an account at the termination of the trust, with the contents §16063 lists.
Lectures liées
Le Centre d'apprentissage est de l'information générale sur la loi de Californie — pas un avis juridique, ni un substitut aux conseils d'un avocat de Californie agréé sur vos faits précis. TrusteeClear est un logiciel, pas un cabinet.