Getting started · 7 min read
Accepting, or declining, the office
A person designated as trustee becomes trustee by accepting. Est. & Trusts § 14.5-701(a) provides that a designated trustee accepts by substantially complying with a method of acceptance the terms of the trust provide or — where the terms provide none, or the method is not expressly made exclusive — by accepting delivery of the trust property, exercising powers or performing duties as trustee, or otherwise indicating acceptance. A designee who has not accepted may reject the trusteeship, and one who does not accept within a reasonable time after knowing of the designation is deemed to have rejected it (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-701(b)); before deciding, a designee may act to preserve the trust property if a rejection is sent within a reasonable time to the settlor or, where the settlor is dead or lacks capacity, to a qualified beneficiary (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-701(c)).
Where no cotrustee remains, a vacancy is filled by the person the terms designate, then by a person the qualified beneficiaries appoint unanimously, then by the court (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-704(c)).
The duties that apply from the first day
Under Est. & Trusts § 14.5-801, on accepting a trusteeship the trustee administers the trust reasonably under the circumstances, in accordance with its terms and purposes, the interests of the beneficiaries and the Trust Act. The duties that follow are the familiar ones in Maryland's words: loyalty, administering the trust solely in the beneficiaries' interests (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-802(a)); impartiality, giving due regard to the beneficiaries' respective interests (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-803); administering the trust as a prudent person would, with reasonable care, skill and caution (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-804); taking reasonable steps to take control of and protect the trust property (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-809); and keeping adequate records, with the trust's property separate from the trustee's own (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-810).
Two notices, and the January 1, 2015 line
Est. & Trusts § 14.5-813(b)(1) sets two windows. Within 60 days after accepting a trusteeship, the trustee notifies the qualified beneficiaries of the acceptance and of the trustee's name, address and telephone number. Within 90 days after the date the trustee acquires knowledge that a formerly revocable trust has become irrevocable — whether by the settlor's death or otherwise — or of the creation of an irrevocable trust, the trustee notifies them of the trust's existence, the identity of the settlor, the right to request a copy of the trust instrument and the right to a trustee's report. The qualified beneficiaries are those who, on the date of determination, are distributees or permissible distributees of trust income or principal, or would be if those interests ended or the trust terminated that day (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-103(u)).
Est. & Trusts § 14.5-813(e) provides that neither notice applies to a trustee that accepted before January 1, 2015, to an irrevocable trust created before that date, or to a revocable trust that became irrevocable before it. The terms may vary the notices, but not as to a qualified beneficiary of an irrevocable trust who has attained 25 years of age (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-105(11)). Who is a qualified beneficiary on a particular day, which side of the 2015 line a trust stands on and whether the instrument varies the notices are questions of the instrument's words and the family's facts — the kind a licensed Maryland attorney of your choosing answers.
The estate beside the trust
A revocable trust rarely holds everything. Property left outside it passes by will or, without one, by descent (Est. & Trusts §§ 3-102 … 3-104), by beneficiary designation or by survivorship. Under Md. Rule 10-801(a), where an estate other than a small estate is opened, the trustee of a trust revocable at the settlor's death notifies the personal representative within 30 days after learning of the estate; under Est. & Trusts § 3-409(c), the trustee notifies a surviving spouse of the trust's existence within 60 days after learning of the death.
Est. & Trusts § 14.5-508(a)(5) provides that, after the settlor's death, the property of a trust that was revocable at the death is subject to the settlor's creditors' claims; where a regular estate is opened, claims not properly presented in it within the estate's periods cannot reach the trust (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-508(b)(1)). A share passing to a recipient outside the inheritance tax's exempt family classes is taxed at 10 percent of its clear value, and the person who distributes it pays the tax before distributing (Tax-Gen. §§ 7-203, 7-204, 7-216). Whether and how far a particular trust answers is a question for a licensed Maryland attorney of your choosing.
The statutes, verbatim
Creditors' claims against the settlor
Est. & Trusts § 14.5-508 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Accepting or rejecting trusteeship
Est. & Trusts § 14.5-701 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
General duty to administer
Est. & Trusts § 14.5-801 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Duty to inform and report
Est. & Trusts § 14.5-813 ↗Clear, simple explanation; the verbatim statute text is not yet attested in our library. See the official statute via the link above.
Common questions
How does a Maryland successor trustee accept the office?
By substantially complying with a method the terms provide or, where they provide none or the method is not expressly exclusive, by accepting delivery of the trust property, exercising powers or performing duties as trustee, or otherwise indicating acceptance (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-701(a)).
What notices does a Maryland trustee owe after accepting?
Within 60 days after accepting, notice of the acceptance and the trustee's contact details; within 90 days after learning that the trust has become irrevocable, notice of its existence, the settlor and the beneficiaries' rights to a copy and a report (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-813(b)(1)) — neither for a trustee who accepted, or a trust irrevocable, before January 1, 2015 (§ 14.5-813(e)).
Does a Maryland successor trustee need a court order to act?
No. A trust is not subject to continuing judicial supervision unless the court orders it (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-201(b)); a successor named in the instrument takes office by accepting (§ 14.5-701). The trustee may give a bank a certification of trust instead of the instrument (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-910).
Related reading
The Learning Center is general information about Maryland law — not legal advice, and not a substitute for advice from a licensed Maryland attorney about your specific facts. TrusteeClear is software, not a law firm.
Frequently asked questions
- How does a Maryland successor trustee accept the office?
- By substantially complying with a method the terms provide or, where they provide none or the method is not expressly exclusive, by accepting delivery of the trust property, exercising powers or performing duties as trustee, or otherwise indicating acceptance (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-701(a)).
- What notices does a Maryland trustee owe after accepting?
- Within 60 days after accepting, notice of the acceptance and the trustee's contact details; within 90 days after learning that the trust has become irrevocable, notice of its existence, the settlor and the beneficiaries' rights to a copy and a report (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-813(b)(1)) — neither for a trustee who accepted, or a trust irrevocable, before January 1, 2015 (§ 14.5-813(e)).
- Does a Maryland successor trustee need a court order to act?
- No. A trust is not subject to continuing judicial supervision unless the court orders it (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-201(b)); a successor named in the instrument takes office by accepting (§ 14.5-701). The trustee may give a bank a certification of trust instead of the instrument (Est. & Trusts § 14.5-910).
General information about Maryland law, not legal advice.