What is Trustee Removal in Towson, MD?

Find An Efficient Legal Aid For Trustee Removal

What is Trustee Removal in Towson, MD?  The only solution to issues that may occur when managing a trust for the benefit of you or your loved ones is occasionally to remove a trustee. This can be particularly crucial when trusts are used to support dependents and family members both throughout their lives and after they pass away.

Both time and money can be saved by hiring a lawyer with experience in Trustee removal. In order for the judge to make an appropriate decision as soon as possible, an experienced Towson, Maryland Estate Planning Attorney will assemble and present the evidence for you. Our Towson law office at The Grafton Firm is here to answer your questions regarding trustee removal and all other estate planning concerns. Schedule a free consultation with us today. 

Why Do I Need a Towson, MD Estate Planning Attorney for Trustee Removal?

Estate planning involves the process of naming the people or organizations you want to receive the things you own after you die. A trustee is a person legally responsible for managing the property in a trust. For the trustee removal process, an estate planning attorney is required for a number of reasons:

• The process for removing a trustee is complex. If you don’t have any knowledge of the law, you can find it complicated because there are certain rules that your lawyer must be familiar with.
• Your case could easily harm if the legal requirements are not followed.
• When facing removal from a trust, a trustee rarely keeps quiet. This can lead to more disputes and conflicts, therefore you might need legal assistance.
• An attorney will confront the trustee in question to ensure that they are aware of your serious request for their dismissal.
• If a judge orders a court hearing, you will have a knowledgeable trustee removal attorney on your side if you hire a lawyer for trustee removal.

Our Towson trustee removal lawyers at The Grafton Firm represent beneficiaries who have been mistreated by fiduciaries and are looking for grounds for the removal of the fiduciary. When necessary, we will ask the court to dismiss a trustee who has violated their obligations. Our effort to guarantee that our clients’ opinions are heard and they obtain the maximum inheritance is driven by our desire to protect beneficiaries’ interests. 

Contact our legal team right now if you require assistance removing a trustee.

What Are The Reasons To Remove a Trustee From Your Trust?

Below are the common reasons for removing a trustee from a trust given the importance of the assets held in trust:

Failure to Comply With Trust Terms

The legal management and ownership of trust assets, which are kept for the benefit of beneficiaries, are endowed on a trustee. With such a grant of power comes the responsibility of the trustee to act in the beneficiaries best interests and fulfill the terms of the trust.

The beneficiaries may ask the court to remove the trustee if he or she disregards or violates those trust terms.

Neglecting, Mismanaging Trust Assets

The trustee has a duty to handle the trust’s assets in a way that doesn’t waste or diminish the value of the fund in the trust. So, the beneficiaries may request the removal of the trustee when he or she violates that obligation due to carelessness or incompetence.

Self-Dealing

Trustee who uses their control over trust funds for their own gain violates their fiduciary obligation to the trust’s beneficiaries, much like neglecting or improperly managing trust assets. The probate court may then order removal as a result.

Self-dealing is only legal when the trustees are sizable financial entities and the beneficiaries sign waivers of conflict of interest.

Good Cause

Beneficiaries may argue more broadly to a probate court why there’s a good reason for the trustee to be fired when they and the trustee disagree on how to distribute trust funds. These reasons must make sense in regard to the circumstances.

Hostility Toward Beneficiaries

Beneficiaries and trustees fought over Nelson Mandela’s trust, despite him being the paragon of peace. Removal may result from a serious deterioration in communication or hostility between the trustee and beneficiary.

In any of these cases, beneficiaries must file a petition with a probate court to have a trustee removed and then appear in court for the removal to be confirmed. It is frequently advisable to seek the advice of and work with a skilled trust attorney before taking this action because dismissing a trustee might get problematic.

How to Remove or Replace a Trustee?

There may come a moment when you feel that a trustee needs to be removed, regardless of whether you established a family trust, are its trustee, or beneficiary.

A family trust is a complex fiduciary arrangement that may give rise to disputes among trustees and beneficiaries even if it can help avoid probate, provide tax benefits, and even help with long-term care planning.

Removal by the trustor

The circumstances in which a trustee could be removed by the trustor should be specified in the trust agreement.

A trustee, including a successor trustee, may typically be removed by the trustor under the terms of the trust. The trustee need not provide a reason for the removal in order to do this at any time. The trustor amends the trust agreement in order to accomplish this.

An irrevocable trust prohibits the removal of a trustee by the trustor, unlike a revocable trust.

Removal by Co-trustee or Beneficiaries

Trust agreements typically provide trustees with some guidance regarding how the assets should be managed and the grounds and steps for removing a trustee, even if trustees have discretion in managing trust assets. The trustee’s fiduciary duty, or the need to uphold the terms of the trust agreement and act in good faith and in the beneficiaries’ best interests, is outlined by Maryland law as part of the trustee’s duties and responsibilities.

Removal by trustee

One or more co-trustees may try to have the other one removed if there is a serious disagreement between them. The trustees should inform the trustor of the issue and request that the other trustee steps down if the trustor is still alive. The trustees should inform the beneficiaries of the issue if the trustor is deceased or incapacitated and ask them to join them in the removal process.

If any beneficiary is a minor or isn’t expressly named, for instance, if beneficiaries are listed as the children of a particular person rather than as identifiable individuals, the situation becomes more problematic. As will be covered below, the trustees who are asking to be removed may also submit a petition for removal.

Removal by beneficiaries

Beneficiaries frequently have the option to remove or replace trustees under trust agreements. Often, a majority of the beneficiaries’ votes is necessary. A trustee may frequently only be removed for a good reason, according to the trust agreement. Beneficiaries who want to have a trustee removed could also need to submit a petition for removal.

Petitioning the court for removal

A co-trustee or a beneficiary may file a petition to have a trustee removed. The petition may also ask the trustee for financial compensation.

To convince the court that the trustee broke the terms of the trust agreement or their fiduciary duty, sufficient evidence must be shown. The process of having a trustee removed by the court is difficult and frequently involves taking depositions, issuing subpoenas for records, and petitioning the court to require the trustee to give an accounting. A trustee may utilize trust assets to fight against removal, which may also involve the help of accountants and other financial specialists.

Call our Towson Estate Planning Attorney Now!

A skilled lawyer should be consulted when removing a trustee and when creating a trust to minimize the chance of a dispute.

If you have questions regarding removing trustees, it’s crucial to seek legal counsel as soon as possible because each case will depend on its unique facts. The Grafton Firm represents trustees and beneficiaries in removal applications and represents trustees in defense of such claims.

Contact our experienced estate planning attorney in Towson, Maryland immediately to arrange a free consultation if you need help removing or replacing a trustee when you’re having issues.

We can also help you in case you have other legal concerns regarding Estate Planning, Bankruptcy, and Civil Litigation.