Pasadena Trust Administration Attorney
Vanessa Terzian, the principal attorney at Terzian Law Partners, APC, started her legal career as a Trust Administrator with Wells Fargo, where she personally administered hundreds of trusts. She has brought her wealth of knowledge and experience working closely with portfolio managers, beneficiaries, fiduciaries and other attorneys to private practice, where she has assisted countless clients with the administration process. At the Law Offices of Vanessa M. Terzian, we represent clients in their role as successor trustee, ensuring that the terms of the trust are properly carried out. We also regularly take the role of trustee and administer trusts first-hand.
The Complexities of Trust Administration
If a decedent formed a proper estate plan and transferred his or her assets into a trust, the estate could be administered outside of probate, without court involvement. Instead, a successor trustee(s) will be responsible for administering the trust. The administration process can be extremely complex, as a trustee must carry out all of his or her duties and responsibilities enumerated in the trust itself, in addition to all of the fiduciary duties that must be fulfilled under the law. Some of these duties include providing statutory notice to beneficiaries and keeping them informed, gathering the decedent’s assets and carrying out the terms of the trust with respect to those assets, notifying potential creditors, filing and paying taxes and many more. In addition, improper trust administration can expose a trustee to personal liability and financial hardship.
Successor trustees often lack the time, resources or knowledge to personally administer the trust, and therefore may call upon legal, accounting and investment professionals for assistance with special training in trust administration. We will work closely with personal representatives, executors, beneficiaries and other fiduciaries in order to ensure that the terms of the trust are properly and accurately carried out, while making the process as understandable and stress-free as possible for the trustee. We can also act a trustee and administer a trust first-hand if a trustor so desires.
Remember, the responsibilities and duties that come along with trust administration are great. Improper administration of a trust can expose you to massive personal liability. Let us help you through the process.