How long does it take to administer a trust?

The Trustee is responsible for administering the trust until he/she resigns, is removed, or until the trust terminates. The way a trust terminates depends, in part, on the type of trust. The Settlor of a revocable trust may terminate the trust at any time without providing a reason for the termination. If the trust is an irrevocable living trust, the Settlor cannot terminate the trust. In that case, the trust terms may grant the power to terminate the trust to the beneficiaries, to the Trustee, or to a specific person – or to a combination of people. The trust itself may also include a term that sets a date when the trust will terminate or that sets forth an event that must occur to trigger the termination of the trust, such as a child reaching the age of majority. Finally, anyone involved in the trust may turn to a court to terminate the trust. A judge may order the termination of a trust for reasons such as the trust purpose has been achieved, the trust has insufficient assets left to warrant continuation or everyone involved agrees that termination is in their best interest.