Yes.  Many trusts now provide for multiple trustees.  While for the most part this is associated with well-off Americans, it is filtering down to the middle class.  Still for the vast majority of my clients in Culver City (and the surrounding areas including Mar Vista, Palms, Marina del Rey, Playa del Rey, Playa Vista, Westchester, Cheviot Hills, Santa Monica, Brentwood, and Venice), naming a trustee is a fairly simple process.

Most of my clients appoint a family member; most frequently it is a child. I do counsel my clients to think about the position seriously and select the individual who will most successfully implement their wishes.  Even for those clients that do not appoint a family member, it has always been fairly straightforward to select a family advisor such as a CPA or the trust department of a bank or an entity that specializes in managing trusts.

Like virtually everything in life, there are advantages and disadvantages to utilizing more than one trustee.   The advantages can include segregation of duties and also asset protection.  Segregation of duties may benefit the performance of the trust. At least that is the idea.

(On another posting to this blog, I will discuss “trust protectors” which are people who monitor the trustee.)

The asset protection idea is that if a beneficiary has the ability to distribute assets from his/her trust, it is more ripe for creditors.  Thus, many parents are thinking twice about making their child(ren) the distribution trustee.  On the other hand, they may allow their child to determine the investment strategy or to manage a family business.

The negatives include the possibility of higher fees associated with administering the trust.  Moreover, if assets do not perform well, there could be issues as to has the fiduciary responsibility to the trust.