New York City Trust Administration Lawyers
The duties of a trustee are numerous and complex. For the most part, the days of administering a trust without nearly constant legal advice are gone. In recognition of the important role that trustees play and the difficult questions they must grapple with, our lawyers at the Manhattan wills and trusts law firm of GREENFIELD STEIN & SENIOR, LLP, offer legal counsel to trustees or to trust beneficiaries to ensure that all legal duties are properly carried out.
If you are a trustee or trust beneficiary, contact our New York City trust administration attorneys online or call (212) 818-9600 to schedule an appointment.
We Provide Administration Assistance for All Types of Trusts
Our lawyers at GREENFIELD STEIN & SENIOR, LLP, have the experience and skill to help trustees and beneficiaries for all manner of trusts, including:
- Administration of living trusts and testamentary trusts
- Administration of irrevocable and revocable trusts
- Administration of special needs trusts
- Administration of charitable trusts
Regardless of the type of trust, you can rest assured that we can handle even the most complicated administrative matters with efficiency and care.
We Help Trustees Follow Their Fiduciary Duties
In the most general sense, the legal counsel we provide in trust administration situations often relates to the definition and execution of "fiduciary duty." The trustee plays a fiduciary role with regard to the trust and the beneficiaries. This means that the trustee must handle the funds for the beneficiaries with the same care as if the trustee was handling his or her own funds. If you, as a trustee, fail to exercise care, there may be a breach of fiduciary duty. The issue of fiduciary duty raises many questions, including:
- What constitutes proper management?
- What constitutes responsible investment?
- How does one resolve a conflict between two generations of beneficiaries − when the older generation wants the income to be high, even at the expense of growth, but the second generation of beneficiaries wants the income low and the growth high?
- What is the definition of self-dealing and how may it be legally avoided?
- What types of actions must a fiduciary take to adequately investigate an independent investment adviser?
In addition to providing counsel on these complex questions relating to trust administration, our Manhattan wills and trusts lawyers also handle the mundane chores associated with the administration of a trust such as accounting, recordkeeping, tax filings, and payouts.
If you have questions regarding a trust, contact our New York City estate planning lawyers online or call (212) 818-9600 to schedule a consultation.