It is the fiduciary duty of the trustee to manage the assets of the Trust in compliance with the terms of the Trust and the Florida Trust Code and to act in the best interests of the beneficiaries. The trustee also has a duty of care, which requires him or her to manage the assets of the Trust as a prudent person would. This provides the trustee with broad but defined discretionary powers.
Unless the Trust document says otherwise, a trustee generally cannot be removed over small or petty disagreements. Rather, to be removed, he/she must have violated the terms of the Trust, violated the Florida Trust Code, or failed to perform the fiduciary duties of the role. Or, pursuant to the Florida Trust Code, a substantially detrimental lack of cooperation between trustee and beneficiary or a significant change in circumstances could convince the court to remove the trustee.
Attorney Sean Byrne is an experienced and dedicated trust and estate litigation attorney who can represent you in your case, whether you are the trustee or the beneficiary. If you want to remove a trustee, or if you are a trustee who wants to contest your proposed removal, call Bach, Jacobs & Byrne, P.A. at (941) 906-1231 to schedule a consultation.
