Legal Articles

Standing: Breach of Trust and Trustee Removal

Trust law distinguishes between “qualified beneficiaries” and “beneficiaries.” A “beneficiary” is a person that has a present or future beneficial interest in a trust or holds a power of appointment over trust property. Section 456.1-103(3), RSMo. A “qualified beneficiary” is different. It includes a beneficiary who is currently eligible to receive trust distributions, as well…

Exculpatory Clauses in Trust, Trust Litigation

An exculpatory clause is a provision which authorizes the trustee to engage in conduct that would otherwise be a breach of fiduciary duty. Before enacting the Uniform Trust Code, Missouri law was that “[a]n exculpatory clause is valid and not contrary to public policy…absent a showing that the settlor was improperly induced to insert it.”…

Trustee Bond

A trustee’s bond is essentially an insurance policy which designates a sum of money that may be recovered to the extent a trustee mismanages a trust estate. For example, if a trustee has a bond, and misappropriates assets, a beneficiary may be able to initiate a claim for breach of trust and recover against the…

Power of Attorney and Attorney-in-Fact Liability

Power of attorney instruments for finances are common estate planning tools. The parties to a power of attorney are the principal and attorney-in-fact. The principal designates and nominates the attorney-in-fact to engage in specified and authorized activities on the principal’s behalf. The attorney-in-fact is a fiduciary and must act in the principal’s interests. The relationship…

Trusts and Nonjudicial Settlement Agreements

The law encourages parties and litigants to resolve disputes outside of court. To that end, Missouri’s Trust laws permit the creation of nonjudicial settlement agreements “with respect to any matter involving a trust.” Section 456.1-111.2, RSMo. There are at least two important qualifications to nonjudicial settlement agreements involving a trust. First, all “interested persons” —…

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