A living trust trustee is a person chosen to follow the instructions contained in a living trust and manage the assets within it. Since the trust is a living trust, meaning someone has chosen to enact this trust while he or she is alive, that same person usually acts as the trustee initially. When that person dies or becomes physically unable to perform the role of trustee, a successor trustee, whom had been chosen at the time the trust was undertaken, takes over the trustee's responsibilities. Based on the instructions of the trust, the living trust trustee takes care of the funds within the trust and makes sure those funds are administered to the beneficiaries as the trust stipulates.
Since many people wish to make sure their assets are protected while they are alive as well as after they die, living trusts are often chosen to make sure this occurs. Living trusts can either be revocable, meaning that the terms of the trust can be changed or the trust can be dissolved entirely, or irrevocable, meaning that the trust cannot be changed at all, even by the person who formed it. In either case, a living trust trustee must be chosen to ensure that the trust's instructions are followed and funds are properly cared for and distributed.
The person who chooses to create the trust and endows it with whatever funds it contains, also known as the grantor, usually serves as the living trust trustee in the trust's initial stages. If a husband and wife put the trust together in both of their names, they may choose to be co-trustees. By doing it this way, the grantor can be absolutely certain that his or her trust is being properly administered while he or she is still alive.
This person will usually want the trust to continue after his or her death so that any beneficiaries of the trust will receive the funds allotted to them. As such, a successor trustee must also be named to serve when the grantor either dies or loses the capacity to serve as trustee. Many people choose a trusted friend or relative as the successor trustee, someone who is close to the grantor and will take special care in making sure the trust is properly managed. An attorney or even an institution such as a bank may also serve as a living trust trustee, which might provide the grantor with more piece of mind, even though there would be a fee involved with utilizing such trustees.
Whomever is chosen must take great care to make sure the assets in the fund survive for the beneficiaries to inherit. None of the assets of the trust may be used for the trustee's benefit unless it is stipulated in the trust itself. The living trustee must keep detailed records of the trust assets and make prudent investments with the funds to ensure the trust grows but isn't put at risk.
