Deed of Appointment of a Trustee

This is a Deed of Appointment (and Retirement) of a Trustee template.

What is a trust deed of appointment?

Use it:

• to appoint a new trustee to an existing trust; and/or
• when a trustee is retiring, resigning or you are removing them.

It is not a trust deed, so will not create a new trust on its own.

You will find the deed template very straight-forward to fill in, so it will only take you a few minutes. It comes with a written guide that leads you through the deed clause-by-clause, so it makes it very easy.

Don’t forget that all trusts need to be registered with HM Revenue & Customs. Click on this link to find out more.

When to use the Deed of Appointment of a Trustee template

This Deed of Appointment of a Trustee template incorporates various options, so it is suitable where there is:

• an existing trust with a trustee or trustees;
• you wish to appoint a new trustee to the trust; and/or
• there is a trustee who has died or who is to retire, resign or be removed.

It does not matter whether a will or a trust deed created the trust. However, if the trust was created by a will, then the person whose will it was must have died by now, otherwise you would alter the will itself to change the nominated trustees (either by a codicil to supplement the existing will, or by making a new will to replace the old will), as the trust would not yet have taken effect.

This template is not appropriate for use where you do not have either:

• an existing trust deed; or
• a trust created by a will (or if the person making the will is still alive).

Other trust templates available

Legalo offers a bare trust deed, which is a trust in a very simple form.

We also offer a deed of appointment of trust assets. That template is for use where you are transferring assets out of a trust to one or more of the trust’s beneficiaries.

Legalo make it easy for you to produce your own legal documents, so we spare you from needing to pay expensive lawyers.

If you want to find out more about English trust law, then you can read about the basics on Wikipedia here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_trust_law

FAQs on the deed of appointment

Below, we have answered the most popular questions on the Internet on this topic.

Do I need a deed of appointment?

If you want to appoint a new or extra trustee or a replacement for a trustee who has died, retired or been removed, then you need to do so by a deed of appointment.

Who signs a deed of appointment?

The existing trustees sign a deed of appointment of a new trustee. Usually you need 2 trustees for this.

How much does a deed of appointment cost?

We estimate a firm of solicitors would charge around £500 plus VAT for a deed of appointment of trustees. You can make significant savings by using a template from Legalo.

What happens to a discretionary trust when the trustee dies?

If there are surviving trustees, then they can appoint a new trustee by a deed of appointment. If there are no remaining Trustees, the Personal Representatives of the last surviving Trustee can appoint new Trustees.

Can a deed of appointment be retrospective?

Only in particular circumstances. You should seek legal advice. It is nearly always better not to try an make any legal document retrospective. You must never back-date anything having a possible impact on tax, as this would be seen as tax fraud by HMRC.

What happens to land held in the name of a deceased trustee?

The land should be transferred to the new set of trustees. So you should contact the Land Registry (in the case of land situated in England and Wales) to check what you need to do to transfer the land out of the names of the old trustees to the new set of trustees. This will probably include your producing a death certificate to the Land Registry.

Clauses in this Deed of Appointment of a Trustee

Below, we have set out the main features of the guide to the template, so you can see what it comprises:

In the parties clauses you will list the continuing trustees, the new trustee and, if there is a retiring trustee, that person also.

The background clauses set out what this deed is about and what trust or will has set it up.

Clause 1

This clause sets out some basic rules regarding the interpretation of the deed.

Clause 2

Clause 2 is the main clause in the deed of appointment of a trustee. It states that the continuing trustees are appointing the new trustee and the retiring trustee is retiring. There is a statutory power under the Trustee Act 1925 for trusts to appoint new trustees. The will or trust deed, as applicable, may also specify a similar power for the trust. In clause 2.1, if there is no trustee who is retiring, then delete all the words in square brackets which refer to the retiring trustee and their retiring.

Clause 3

Clause 3 is about the law and jurisdiction – If any party is based abroad, you may wish to change the jurisdiction clause to reflect this and/or make it non-exclusive. Where the trust is based in the UK, the jurisdiction should be exclusively that of England (covering England and Wales), Scotland or Northern Ireland as applicable (change it if need be if it is not England or Wales).

Schedules

In the schedules, you will list the background documents relevant to the trust and the principal assets of the trust.

Finally, the guide explains how you validly sign the deed of appointment of a trustee, using a witness.