Accountings

What the report needs to show

Beneficiaries are entitled to enough information to protect their interests. The annual report is how you provide it. List what the trust held, what came in, what went out, and what is left. If you were paid, the amount and the basis for it go on the same page. A copy of the fiduciary income tax return can be part of the package. Fancy binding is optional. Missing months are not.

Keep every statement. If you reimburse yourself, label the line as a reimbursement and keep the receipt. Trustee compensation has to track the trust. Many documents say "reasonable compensation." What is reasonable depends on the work and the size of the trust. Decide it in the open, tell the beneficiaries, and put it on the report.

Never mix the money

Do not run trust expenses through your personal account, even for a weekend, even if you are also a beneficiary. That mixing is called commingling. It is one of the fastest ways to lose the other beneficiaries' confidence and the sympathy of a judge. The trust account you opened for the EIN is the remedy. Use it.

Questions are normal

A beneficiary may ask for a copy of the trust and for the report. If they are a person the statute or the document entitles to that information, ignoring the letter is worse than sending the pages. You can be polite and still decline to let three siblings approve every trip to the dump. When a request feels improper, or hostile, call a lawyer rather than guessing which emails to delete.