Fort Walton Beach Trust Administration

How Trust Administration Differs from Probate

Trust administration generally covers assets legally owned by the trust. Probate addresses assets that remain in an individual’s name at death and lack a valid non-probate transfer, such as a beneficiary designation or another effective ownership arrangement.

Both processes may be necessary when a trust wasn’t fully funded during the trust-maker’s lifetime. Probate can address property outside the trust, while the successor trustee manages trust assets and completes distributions under the document. The processes share tasks involving asset collection, creditor issues, expenses and distributions, but they operate under different legal authority.

Florida Trustee Duties & Required Filings

The Florida Trust Code, Chapter 736 of the Florida Statutes, governs administration following a settlor’s death. Trustees must follow the trust terms while fulfilling their statutory duties to beneficiaries.

The trustee must then file a notice of trust with the court. A settlor is the person who created the trust. The notice identifies the settlor and date of death, the trust title and date, and the trustee’s name and address.

The trustee identifies the beneficiaries and administers distributions according to the trust after addressing assets, expenses, applicable taxes and creditor concerns. Beneficiary interests can differ, particularly when the document establishes different distribution terms, continuing trusts or conditions for receiving property.

Creditor Claims

Florida trust law doesn’t provide a specific stand-alone procedure for identifying and paying creditors following a death. Creditor issues may therefore intersect with probate, and creditors generally have up to two years after death to file claims against the estate. The applicable process depends on the estate, the type of debt and whether probate is opened.

Timing, Attorney Selection & Fees

There’s no standard completion period for every trust. Timing depends on the assets involved, creditor questions, tax matters, required property transfers and any dispute affecting administration. A trust holding straightforward financial accounts may present different demands from one involving business interests, complex property or contested beneficiary rights.

Florida law doesn’t impose a mandatory attorney fee for trust administration, and the fee doesn’t have to be calculated from the trust’s size. Cost can depend on the scope of work and the issues requiring legal attention. A trustee may select an attorney and isn’t required to use the lawyer who drafted the trust.

Legal guidance may be useful when trust language is unclear, an asset’s ownership is uncertain or beneficiary interests appear to conflict. An attorney can also assist with documenting decisions, coordinating probate and evaluating property-transfer questions. Issues such as a surviving spouse’s elective share, a statutory right to claim part of a deceased spouse’s estate, require analysis of the individual estate and trust structure.