Trust director

How it works

A trust director holds a power of direction that the trust's terms grant. Under the Florida Uniform Directed Trust Act, that power is exercisable while the person is not serving as trustee. The grant comes from the trust document itself.

The Uniform Directed Trust Act (UDTA) keeps directed trusts distinct from cotrusteeship. A person serving as trustee cannot hold a power of direction or be a trust director. The two roles are filled by different people.

Where it shows up for owners of businesses, real estate and private investments

An owner who places business interests, rental property or private investment holdings in a trust may find that the trust's terms assign a power of direction to a person who is not the trustee. The trustee and the trust director then act as two separate roles under one trust.

Practitioners describe an exchange of information between the two roles. The trustee and trust director provide each other information relating to powers or duties of both.

Georgia law addresses a trust director's liability and the timing of claims against a director.

Georgia law also sets the timing for claims against a director. A breach-of-trust action against a trust director must be filed within the same limitation period that applies to a trustee in a like position.

Points that are easy to confuse

A trust director and a cotrustee fill different roles. Under the UDTA, a cotrusteeship arrangement is not a directed trust, because a trustee cannot also be the director.

Florida and Georgia each speak through their own statutes. Florida's text defines the trust director, while Georgia's text addresses liability and the limitation period for claims against a director.

Common questions