West Virginia Code 44D-8A-809 – Duty and liability of directed trustee
(a) Subject to subsection (b) of this section, a directed trustee shall take reasonable action to comply with a trust director‘s exercise or nonexercise of a power of direction or further power under §44D-8A-806(b)(1) of this code, and the trustee is not liable for the action.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 44D-8A-809
- Breach of trust: means a violation by a trust director or trustee of a duty imposed on that director or trustee by the terms of the trust, this article, or law of this state, other than this article pertaining to trusts. See West Virginia Code 44D-8A-802
- Directed trustee: means a trustee that is subject to a trust director's power of direction. See West Virginia Code 44D-8A-802
- Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Knowingly: means known by the trustee based on the contents of the direction and any information provided by the trust director to the trustee. See West Virginia Code 44D-8A-802
- Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
- Power of direction: means a power over a trust granted to a person by the terms of the trust to the extent the power is exercisable while the person is not serving as a trustee. See West Virginia Code 44D-8A-802
- Trust director: means a person that is granted a power of direction by the terms of a trust to the extent the power is exercisable while the person is not serving as a trustee. See West Virginia Code 44D-8A-802
- Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
(b) A directed trustee must not comply with a trust director’s exercise or nonexercise of a power of direction or further power under §44D-8A-806(b)(1) of this code to the extent that the directed trustee is thereby directed knowingly to violate the laws or regulations of any jurisdiction applicable to the trust. The directed trustee may reasonably rely upon the advice of legal counsel to determine what actions would be consistent with, or contrary to, applicable law. Reasonable expenses incurred by the directed trustee in good faith for legal advice concerning an instruction from a trust director or a petition to the court for instructions shall be proper expenses of the trust.
(c) An exercise of a power of direction under which a trust director may release a trustee or another trust director from liability for breach of trust is not effective if:
(1) The breach involved the trustee’s or other director’s breach of fiduciary duty as set forth in subsection (b) of this section;
(2) The release was induced by improper conduct of the trustee or other director in procuring the release; or
(3) At the time of the release, the director did not know the material facts relating to the breach.
(d) A directed trustee that has reasonable doubt about its duty under this section may petition the court for instructions.
(e) The terms of a trust may impose a duty or liability on a directed trustee in addition to the duties and liabilities under this section.