Delegation by Trustee, Agents

A trust administration can be complex, particularly if it includes securities, real estate or business interests. Sometimes more than just the trustee is needed to make decisions. As a general rule, trustees are entitled to delegate to an agent duties and powers that a prudent trustee could properly delegate under the circumstances. Lorimont Place, Inc. v. Jerry Lipps, Inc., 403 S.W.3d 104, 108 (Mo. Ct. App. 2013).
In making any delegation, the trustee must exercise reasonable care, skill and caution in (1) selecting an agent, (2) establishing the scope of the delegation consistent with the purposes and terms of the trust, and (3) periodically reviewing the agent’s actions to monitor the agent’s performance. Section 456.8-807, RSMo.
When there has been a delegation, an agent owes a duty to the trust to exercise reasonable care to comply with the terms of the delegation. An agent needs to exercise caution because the beneficiaries of a trust could conceivably sue the agent if the agent acts improperly to the detriment of the trust. At the same time, a trustee could also be liable to trust beneficiaries for an agent’s misconduct.
Contact with questions relating to trustees, beneficiaries, breach of trust suits or trust delegation.

Related Articles

Will Contests, Self-Proving Wills

March 30, 2023

Will contests are unique for several reasons. Perhaps most significantly, the burden is on the proponent of the document to prove the will was executed and that the testator possessed the requisite capacity. Many times the “proponent” of the will is the defendant in the lawsuit. So, the will contest instructions contemplate the defendant presenting…

Read More

Trustee Abuse of Discretion Factors

October 30, 2022

Increasingly, trust instruments grant trustees “discretion” to do certain acts. Drafters include this language to account for unanticipated circumstances and make a trustee’s life easier. But even where a trustee has discretion, they can act improperly. “A grant of absolute discretion to a trustee is not a roving commission – the trustee must be guided…

Read More

Probate Exception to Federal Jurisdiction

September 9, 2022

There are two main ways for a lawsuit to end up in federal court. First, if the lawsuit “arises under” federal law. This is sometimes called federal question jurisdiction. Second, if there is diversity jurisdiction. There are, in turn, two main requirements for diversity jurisdiction: the amount in controversy must exceed $75,000 and all of…

Read More

Trust Language: “Necessary or Advisable” Distributions

March 4, 2022

The language of a trust is extremely important. And when a will, trust, and other estate documents form part of the same plan, they are interpreted together. Indeed, “[w]hen a trust and will form parts of the same plan, they must be construed together.” Shriners Hospital for Children v. Schaper, 215 S.W.3d 185, 189-90 (Mo….

Read More
Scroll to Top