The person in charge of managing a trust, called the trustee, must keep the people who benefit from the trust up-to-date and informed about the trust and how it’s being managed.

This law defines what the 'terms of the trust' include for an irrevocable trust. It refers to the written trust document and any provisions effective when the trust can no longer be altered because the person who created it has passed away. This includes signatures, changes, disclaimers, and instructions to the trustee that impact how the trust is handled. It does not cover documents meant to influence the trust while it was still changeable. If the trust document has been fully updated, only the latest version and any further amendments count as terms. It also covers documents that exercise a power of appointment over the irrevocable parts of the trust.

If you are a beneficiary of a trust and you ask the trustee for the details of the trust, the trustee has to give you that information unless there is a specific rule saying they don't have to according to another part of the law.

If you're a beneficiary of a trust, you can ask the trustee to give you information about how the trust is being managed. The trustee must provide this information, as long as it's relevant to your interest in the trust and unless there's an exception in another section, specifically Section 16069.

This law mandates that a trustee must provide a complete copy of the terms of an irrevocable trust, or its irrevocable parts, to specific individuals who request it. These include any beneficiary or an heir of a deceased person who created the trust when the trust becomes irrevocable due to their death. It also requires this copy to be provided when there's a change in trustees for an irrevocable trust. For charitable trusts monitored by the Attorney General, the trust must also be provided upon request under the same conditions. Additionally, in determining who the heirs are, trustees can rely on a court's final decision or make a good faith determination if no such decision exists.

This law requires trustees to send a notification to certain individuals when specific events occur, such as when a trust becomes irrevocable due to a settlor’s death, there’s a change of trustee, or a power of appointment lapses.

The notification must be sent to beneficiaries, heirs, and in some cases, the Attorney General, within 60 days of the event. This notice must include details about the trust, trustees, and recipients' rights to view the trust terms. Importantly, if a trust becomes irrevocable due to a settlor’s death, the notice must include a warning about the deadline to contest the trust.

Trustees must act in good faith and make reasonable efforts to locate and notify all necessary parties. The section also makes it clear that any waiver of these requirements by a settlor is invalid.

If you receive a notice from a trustee about a trust, you have a limited time to contest it. Specifically, you cannot start a lawsuit to challenge the trust more than 120 days after getting the notice or 60 days after receiving a copy of the trust terms, whichever of these two deadlines is later.

If a trustee doesn't notify beneficiaries or known heirs about the trust as required, they could be responsible for any damages or legal costs that arise from this failure. However, if the trustee tried hard enough to deliver this notification, they might not be held accountable. For heirs, trying hard enough means sending notice to the heir's last known address. Additionally, when deciding when and how to distribute trust assets, a trustee can consider that beneficiaries or heirs might still have time to challenge the trust.

This law outlines how and when a trustee (the person managing a trust) must provide accounting or financial statements to trust beneficiaries. Generally, the trustee must do this annually, when the trust ends, or if there's a change of trustee. However, certain older trusts, specifically those created before July 1, 1987, either by a living trust or a will, may be exempt from this rule unless specific conditions are met.

The law also states that any attempt to limit or waive the trustee's duty to account for their actions is invalid if the trustee is considered a 'disqualified person' or falls under certain legal sections. Essentially, trustees must be transparent about how they handle trust finances, with some exceptions for older trusts.

This section outlines what information a trustee must include in their annual account report to the trust's beneficiaries. The account should cover financial activities such as money coming in (receipts) and going out (disbursements), the trust's assets and debts, the trustee's compensation, details about any hired agents and their pay, and notify beneficiaries that they can ask the court to review the account. It also mentions that beneficiaries have three years to make a claim against the trustee for breach of trust after receiving this account.

Additionally, if an account needs court approval, it must follow a specific procedure outlined in another section of the legal code.

This law outlines when a trustee doesn't need to provide financial accounts to beneficiaries. Specifically, a trustee doesn't need to account if the trust document waives it, but if there's suspected wrongdoing, the court can still demand an accounting. Also, a beneficiary can agree in writing to not receive accounts, but they can later change their mind and withdraw that waiver for future transactions. Additionally, other exceptions are covered under another section.

This law states that if a person who creates a trust, called the settlor, tries to waive or cancel the trustee's responsibilities to share important information with the beneficiaries, such a waiver is not allowed and is considered invalid. Specifically, the law ensures beneficiaries must receive the terms of the trust and any other requested information related to the trust, as outlined in other specific sections of the law.

This law explains when a trustee does not need to provide information to beneficiaries. First, if the trust is revocable, the trustee does not have to share details while the trust can still be changed. Second, if the trustee is also the beneficiary, they do not need to report to themselves. But, if the person who can revoke the trust is not mentally capable, the trustee must give information to certain beneficiaries.