Pennsylvania Trustee Mistake # 4- Failing To Follow The Uniform Trust Act

The Pennsylvania Uniform Trust Act was designed to bring greater uniformity and stability to the area of trust law. The Pennsylvania Uniform Trust Act is so large and potentially important that it constitutes  nearly one-third of the content of the law surrounding trusts and estates ( The PEF Code).

  Trustees need to know how the UTA applies since, this act sometimes trumps the language of the trust. Some examples of mandatory rules created by the Pennsylvania's Uniform Trust Act include rules governing basic requirements for a trust creation, modification, and termination and when beneficiaries get notice of the trust.

If you do not follow the mandatory rules in the Pennsylvania Uniform Trust Act you are opening the door to be  personally liable, and you may open yourself up to being sued even years down the road because you did not follow the steps to cut off this ability.

Being a trustee can be a complicated and laborious job. To get off on the right foot you want to make sure you follow the mandatory rules of the Pennsylvania Uniform Trust Act. If you do not know all of the mandatory rules and how to implement them as they apply to your trust, talk to a professional so you can turn a complicated and laborious job into a manageable one that yields the best outcome for everyone involved in the trust.

See all ten of our articles on How To Avoid The Most Common Mistakes Trustees Make:

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 1: Trustees Failing To Understand The Trust Language

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 2: Trustees In Trouble Making Early Distributions

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 3: Trustees Failing To Follow The Prudent Investor Rule

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 4: Trustees Failing To Follow The Uniform Trust Act

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 5: Trustees Failing To Follow The Principle And Income Act

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 6: Trustees Failing To Communicate Properly

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 7: Failing To Properly Reform, Amend, Or Terminate

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 8: Failing To File Tax Returns Or To Seek Professional Assistance

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 9: Failing To Understand The Role Of Multiple Trustees

Avoiding Trustee Mistakes No. 10: Trustees Failing To Do The Job

David M. Frees III
dfrees@utbf.com
610-933-8069
Representing trustees and executors