Core duties · 6 min read
The report on request
On reasonable request by any qualified beneficiary, the trustee provides a report of information, to the extent relevant to that beneficiary's interest, about the assets, liabilities, receipts and disbursements of the trust, the acts of the trustee and the particulars relating to the administration, including the trust provisions that describe or affect the beneficiary's interest (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-243(a)). The statute states no number of days; what is relevant to a beneficiary's interest is a judgment the trustee makes with counsel.
The accounting, and who receives it
A trustee accounts at least annually, at the termination of the trust and upon a change of trustees, to each beneficiary of an irrevocable trust to whom income or principal is required or authorized in the trustee's discretion to be distributed during the period covered by the report, and to any person who may revoke the trust; on a change of trustees, also to the successor (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-243(b)(1)). The accounting contains a statement of receipts and disbursements of principal and income during the last complete fiscal year or since the last accounting to that beneficiary, and a statement of the assets and liabilities at the period's end (§ 53-12-243(b)(2)).
The recipients are the distribution class for the period — not every qualified beneficiary, and not whoever asks. While the settlor who reserved the power to revoke is alive and the power is unreleased, the duties are owed to the settlor alone (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-46(a)(1)).
The waiver, the instrument, and the settlor's writing
No report or accounting is owed to a beneficiary who has waived the right in writing and has not withdrawn the waiver, or to the unascertainable charitable beneficiaries of a noncharitable trust (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-243(c)). The duties — and the common-law duty to keep the beneficiaries reasonably informed — do not apply to the extent the trust provisions provide otherwise or the settlor directed otherwise in a writing delivered to the trustee (§ 53-12-243(d)); the court may still require or excuse an accounting (§ 53-12-243(e)). Whether a given clause or writing displaces a duty is a question of its words.
The two-year period a report can start
A beneficiary's claim against the trustee for breach of trust is barred unless a proceeding is commenced within two years after the date the beneficiary was sent a written report that adequately disclosed the existence of the claim — sufficient information so that the beneficiary knows of the claim or reasonably should have inquired into it — and otherwise within six years after the beneficiary discovered or reasonably should have discovered its subject (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-307(a)). The period runs from the sending, which § 53-12-511 governs: a record sent solely through an electronic portal tolls the period if access ends without consent or the record disappears, unless an alternative means is notified within 30 days.
The statutes, verbatim
Definitions
O.C.G.A. § 53-12-2 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Duty to provide reports and accounts
O.C.G.A. § 53-12-243 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Limitation of actions
O.C.G.A. § 53-12-307 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Method of providing notice
O.C.G.A. § 53-12-511 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Common questions
Who receives a Georgia trustee's accounting?
Each beneficiary to whom income or principal is required or authorized to be distributed during the period, and any person who may revoke the trust; on a change of trustees, the successor too (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-243(b)(1)).
Can a beneficiary waive the accounting in Georgia?
Yes, in writing, and the waiver may be withdrawn; the instrument or the settlor's writing delivered to the trustee may also provide otherwise, and the court may require or excuse an accounting (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-243(c), (d), (e)).
Does a Georgia accounting have to warn about the two-year period?
The statute requires no statement in the report; the two-year period of O.C.G.A. § 53-12-307(a) runs from the date a written report that adequately disclosed the claim was sent.
Related reading
The Learning Center is general information about Georgia law — not legal advice, and not a substitute for advice from a licensed Georgia attorney about your specific facts. TrusteeClear is software, not a law firm.
Frequently asked questions
- Who receives a Georgia trustee's accounting?
- Each beneficiary to whom income or principal is required or authorized to be distributed during the period, and any person who may revoke the trust; on a change of trustees, the successor too (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-243(b)(1)).
- Can a beneficiary waive the accounting in Georgia?
- Yes, in writing, and the waiver may be withdrawn; the instrument or the settlor's writing delivered to the trustee may also provide otherwise, and the court may require or excuse an accounting (O.C.G.A. § 53-12-243(c), (d), (e)).
- Does a Georgia accounting have to warn about the two-year period?
- The statute requires no statement in the report; the two-year period of O.C.G.A. § 53-12-307(a) runs from the date a written report that adequately disclosed the claim was sent.
General information about Georgia law, not legal advice.