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Vermont Probate Court
Testamentary Trusts
Generally, the Probate Court has jurisdiction over Testamentary Trusts (trusts that are created by will). If you have been named in the will as Trustee of the trust and have chosen to accept the position, there are several duties that are now your responsibility. The name Trustee means that you are acting for the benefit of another which is exactly what your duties entail. A testamentary trust may be created when the decedent has specified in their will that they wish a certain piece of property or amount of money to be placed into trust and managed by a fiduciary for the benefit of a third party. It is the duty of the Trustee to manage the original property in such a way that the principal is protected and the largest possible benefit is paid out to the third party according to the terms of the trust. For example, the trust might state that a commercial building is to be the principal of the trust and that a third party is to receive the profits from the building for ten years, at which time the building is to be sold and the money paid in full to the third party. In that situation, it would be the Trustee’s duty to make sure that the building is maintained and profitably rented during the ten years and, at the time of the sale, it is sold for the best price possible. The Trustee also has duties to the Court, which they must perform. One of the major Trustee duties is to provide annual accounts so that the Court and interested persons can oversee the management of the trust. This is done to make sure that the Fiduciary is not mismanaging the trust property either through incompetence or criminal intent.
In limited situations the Vermont Probate Courts have jurisdiction over the replacement of Trustees of intervivos trusts (often called "living trusts"). The law concerning this sort of petition is set forth in 14 V.S.A. § 2314.
Individual Forms | Vermont Statutes | FAQ
Instructions / Overview:
If a will creates a trust (a "testamentary trust"), the trust must be "established." A trust is established by filing a petition to open a testamentary trust. Because the beneficiaries of the trust might be different from those of the will, it is necessary to list the interested persons for the trust. The forms to open a trust estate are Probate Forms 110 (Petition) and Form 111 (List of Interested Persons). The person petitioning for the opening of the trust estate usually solicits consent from the beneficiaries by securing their signatures on page 2 of the Petition. The Court filing fee is between $50.00 and $100.00 depending on the value of assets in the trust. Please see the general information page for greater detail on Court Fees.
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