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20 Pa.C.S. § 7780.20

Duty and liability of directed trustee - UDTA 9

Known as the Probate, Estates and Fiduciaries Code

The act spans §§ 20–20 (744 sections).

(a) Duty to comply with power of direction.--Subject to subsection (b), a directed trustee shall take reasonable action to comply with a trust director's exercise or nonexercise of a power of direction, and the directed trustee shall not be liable for that action.

(b) Exception for willful misconduct.--A directed trustee shall not comply with a trust director's exercise or nonexercise of a power of direction to the extent that, by doing so, the directed trustee would engage in willful misconduct.

(c) When release from liability ineffective.--An exercise of a power of direction under which a trust director purports to release a trustee or another trust director from liability for breach of trust is ineffective:

(1) to the extent that it would relieve the trustee or the other trust director of liability for a breach of trust committed in bad faith or with reckless indifference to the purposes of the trust or the interests of the beneficiaries;

(2) if the release was induced by improper conduct of the trustee or the other trust director in procuring the release; or

(3) if, at the time of the release, the trust director that exercised the power did not know of the material facts relating to the breach.

(d) Petition for declaratory judgment.--A directed trustee that has reasonable doubt about its duty under this section may petition the court for a declaratory judgment.

(e) Additional duties and liabilities.--The terms of the trust may impose a duty or liability on a directed trustee in addition to the duties and liabilities prescribed by this section.

Official source: Pennsylvania General Assembly. Reproduced from public-domain Pennsylvania statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.