Що робити, якщо вас призначено управителем у Вірджинії

Before you act: read, then decide

Being designated is not accepting. A designated trustee accepts by the method the terms provide or, where they provide none or the method is not exclusive, by accepting delivery of the trust property, exercising powers or performing duties as trustee; one who does not accept within a reasonable time after knowing of the designation is deemed to have rejected the trusteeship, and before accepting may act to preserve the property and inspect it (Va. Code § 64.2-754). Read the trust instrument and every amendment first: the terms prevail over most of the statute's default rules (Va. Code § 64.2-703).

Check whether the trust was created by a will. A trustee named in a will qualifies and gives bond before the circuit court or its clerk where the will was probated before acting (Va. Code § 64.2-1401); a living trust's trustee qualifies only if the instrument requires it (Va. Code § 64.2-1403).

The beginnings that matter, and what they ask of you

Two dates start Virginia's notice clocks. The day you accept starts 60 days to notify the qualified beneficiaries of the acceptance and of your name, address and telephone number (Va. Code § 64.2-775(B)(2)); the day you acquire knowledge that the trust is irrevocable — created so, or become so by the settlor's death or otherwise — starts 60 days to notify them of the trust's existence, the settlor, the right to a copy of the instrument and the right to a trustee's report (Va. Code § 64.2-775(B)(3)). Both apply only to a trust irrevocable on or after July 1, 2006 (Va. Code § 64.2-775(E)).

The settlor's death also starts the contest window — the earlier of two years or six months after the trustee's notice (Va. Code § 64.2-753(A)) — and the creditors' two years on a written demand to the personal representative (Va. Code § 64.2-747(A)(3)). Record each date the day you learn it.

The documents to find in the first week

Gather the trust instrument and every amendment, a certified copy of the death certificate — the fee is set by the Board of Health and may not exceed $15 (Va. Code § 32.1-273) — the deeds, the account and brokerage statements, the life insurance and retirement beneficiary designations, any will and any power of attorney. A will lodged for safekeeping with the clerk of the circuit court is held unopened until the testator's death (Va. Code § 64.2-409).

• The trust instrument, every amendment and any restatement.
• The death certificate, in certified copies for each institution that asks.
• Deeds and title records for real estate; account and brokerage statements.
• Beneficiary designations for insurance, annuities and retirement accounts.
• Any will, and whether it has been offered for probate in the circuit court (Va. Code § 64.2-443).

Assets by how they are titled

What the trust governs is what is titled to it. Property deeded to the trust, or to its trustees, is trust property (Va. Code § 64.2-772); title vests in a successor trustee on acceptance without a conveyance (Va. Code § 64.2-760). Property in the settlor's name alone may pass through the estate; property with a beneficiary designation or joint with survivorship passes outside both. List each asset by how it is titled, with its value at the death, and review the trust assets within a reasonable time under the prudent investor rule (Va. Code § 64.2-784).

Some assets are protected from creditors by statute — life insurance proceeds (Va. Code § 38.2-3122) and qualified retirement plan interests (Va. Code § 34-34) among them — and whether an asset is reachable is a question to note, not to decide.

The beneficiaries, and what they are owed

The qualified beneficiaries are those who, on the date of determination, are distributees or permissible distributees of income or principal, or would be if those interests or the trust ended on that date (Va. Code § 64.2-701); a beneficiary who asks for notice receives it too (Va. Code § 64.2-708). Notice to a person who may represent and bind another — a guardian, an agent, a parent for a minor — has the effect of notice to the other, absent a conflict (Va. Code §§ 64.2-714, 64.2-716).

They are owed the two notices, reasonable information about the administration and a prompt response to a request (Va. Code § 64.2-775(A)), the instrument on request (Va. Code § 64.2-775(B)(1)), advance notice of a change in compensation (Va. Code § 64.2-775(B)(4)) and, for the distributees and permissible distributees, the report at least annually (Va. Code § 64.2-775(C)). A beneficiary may waive a report or other information (Va. Code § 64.2-775(D)).

Строки довірчого власника у Вірджинії: що передбачають закони

Звірено із законами Вірджинії 2026-10-25. Загальна інформація, не юридична консультація; офіційний текст має пріоритет.

The estate, the creditors, and the reserve

A trust revocable at the death answers for the settlor's creditors, the estate's administration costs, the funeral and the statutory allowances to the extent the probate estate is inadequate, on a written demand to the personal representative and within two years after the death (Va. Code § 64.2-747(A)(3)). The personal representative gives notice of the probate within 30 days (Va. Code § 64.2-508), may publish a notice to creditors (Va. Code § 64.2-508.1), and returns an inventory within four months (Va. Code § 64.2-1300(A)).

A surviving spouse may elect against the augmented estate, which counts a revocable trust, within six months after probate (Va. Code § 64.2-308.12). On termination the trustee distributes expeditiously, keeping a reasonable reserve for debts, expenses and taxes (Va. Code § 64.2-779(B)).

Money, taxes, and the record from day one

Keep adequate records of the administration and keep the trust property separate from your own (Va. Code § 64.2-772). Open the trust's accounts in the trustee's name; a bank may ask for a certification of trust, which carries the trust's taxpayer identification number among its eight items (Va. Code § 64.2-804). Record every receipt and payment as it happens: the report draws on the ledger (Va. Code § 64.2-775(C)).

The trust files a Virginia fiduciary income tax return, Form 770, on or before May 1 for a calendar year where it is a resident trust required to file a federal return or has Virginia taxable income (Va. Code § 58.1-381); a resident trust is one created by a Virginia domiciliary's will or by or with a Virginia domiciliary's property (Va. Code § 58.1-302). Virginia imposes no estate tax for a death on or after July 1, 2007 (Va. Code § 58.1-902).

A trust under a will: the court track

A trustee who qualifies in the clerk's office returns an inventory to the Commissioner of Accounts within four months after first receiving assets (Va. Code § 64.2-1300(C)), and a testamentary trustee accounts for each calendar year on or before May 1 of the next (Va. Code § 64.2-1306) — unless the will waives accounts and the trustee gives the 90-day notice to each adult current beneficiary (Va. Code § 64.2-1307(B)). A trustee who files no account within four months after the year ends forfeits that year's compensation unless the commissioner allows it (Va. Code § 64.2-1217).

The checklist, printable

The steps above, as a list to print and keep with the record.

• Read the trust instrument and every amendment; decide whether to accept (Va. Code § 64.2-754).
• If the trust was created by a will, qualify before the circuit court or clerk where the will was probated (Va. Code § 64.2-1401).
• Record the date of death, the date you accepted, the date you learned the trust was irrevocable and the date it became irrevocable.
• Within 60 days of accepting: notify the qualified beneficiaries of the acceptance and your name, address and telephone number (Va. Code § 64.2-775(B)(2)).
• Within 60 days of learning the trust is irrevocable: notify the qualified beneficiaries of its existence, the settlor, the right to a copy of the instrument and the right to a report (Va. Code § 64.2-775(B)(3)).
• Confirm the trust stands on or after the July 1, 2006 line for the notices and the report (Va. Code § 64.2-775(E)).
• Record how and when each notice was sent, and to whom (Va. Code § 64.2-707).
• Gather the instrument, the death certificate, the deeds, the statements, the designations and the will.
• List every asset by how it is titled and its value at the death; take control of and protect the property (Va. Code § 64.2-771).
• Open trust accounts in the trustee's name; keep trust property separate (Va. Code § 64.2-772).
• Review the assets within a reasonable time under the prudent investor rule (Va. Code § 64.2-784).
• Identify the qualified beneficiaries and anyone who may receive notice for a beneficiary; note your own answers.
• Record the estate's clocks — the notice of probate, the creditor notice, the inventory, the spouse's election.
• For a trust under a will: the inventory within four months and the account each May 1 (Va. Code §§ 64.2-1300(C), 64.2-1306).
• Keep the ledger current for the trustee's report, at least annually and at termination (Va. Code § 64.2-775(C)).

What to avoid in the first months

Do not distribute before the beneficiaries, the creditors and the contest window are known; a beneficiary of a trust later held invalid must return what was received (Va. Code § 64.2-753(C)). Do not buy from, sell to or borrow from the trust, or deal with relatives or your own business, without care: such a transaction is voidable by an affected beneficiary (Va. Code § 64.2-764). Do not mix trust money with your own (Va. Code § 64.2-772). Do not pay yourself without recording the basis and giving advance notice of a change in method or rate (Va. Code §§ 64.2-761, 64.2-775(B)(4)).

When a licensed Virginia attorney is the right next call

Whether to accept, whether qualification is required, who the qualified beneficiaries are, whether the trust stands inside subsection E, whether the instrument varies a notice, how a creditor's demand reaches the trust and when a distribution is safe are questions a licensed Virginia attorney of your choosing answers from the instrument and the facts. TrusteeClear organizes the record and shows the statute's clocks from your dates; it does not decide them.