Certification of trust; contents; liability of person relying on
certification of trust
Sec. 5. (a) A trustee may furnish to a person other than a
beneficiary a certification of trust instead of a copy of the trust
instrument. The certification of trust must contain the following
information:
(1) That the trust exists and the date the trust instrument was
executed.
(2) The identity of the settlor.
(3) The identity and address of the currently acting trustee.
(4) The powers of the trustee.
(5) The revocability or irrevocability of the trust and the
identity of any person holding a power to revoke the trust.
(6) The authority of cotrustees to sign or otherwise authenticate
and whether all or less than all the cotrustees are required in
order to exercise the powers of the trustee.
(7) The trust's taxpayer identification number.
(8) The manner of taking title to trust property.
(b) A certification of trust may be signed or authenticated by any
trustee.
(c) A certification of trust must state that the trust has not been
revoked, modified, or amended in any manner that would cause the
representations contained in the certification of trust to be incorrect.
(d) A certification of trust may contain the dispositive terms of a
trust.
(e) A recipient of a certification of trust may require the trustee to
furnish copies of excerpts from the original trust instrument and later
amendments that:
(1) designate the trustee; and
(2) confer on the trustee the power to act in a pending
transaction in which the recipient has an interest.
(f) A person who acts in reliance on a certification of trust without
knowledge that the representations contained in the certification of
trust are incorrect:
(1) is not liable to any person for acting in reliance on the
certification of trust; and
(2) may assume without inquiry the existence of the facts
contained in the certification of trust.
Knowledge of the terms of the trust may not be inferred solely from
the fact that a copy of all or part of the trust instrument is held by the
person relying on the certification.
(g) A person who in good faith enters into a transaction in reliance
on a certification of trust may enforce the transaction against the trust
property as if the representations contained in the certification were
correct.
(h) A person making a demand for the trust instrument in addition
to a certification of trust or excerpts from the original trust
instrument is liable for damages if the court determines that a person
did not act in good faith in demanding the trust instrument.
(i) This section does not limit the right of a person to obtain a
copy of the trust instrument in a judicial proceeding concerning the
trust.
As added by P.L.238-2005, SEC.41.
Last modified: May 27, 2006