Probate & Trust Law Section Conference Manual ... - Minnesota CLE

enough. A professional fiduciary is held to a very high
standard and bound by the Prudent Investor Act. Adequate
language can be drafted using a majority rule clause for
example and providing for multiple individual co-trustees to
be serving at all times.
2. If investment management is going to be an issue and
create constant friction, you might consider separating the
administrative function from the investment function of the
trust. I have never administered a trust where we acted as
administrative trustee only, but there is no reason why you
could not split these duties if it makes sense for your client
and you include the necessary language in your document.
j. Settlor’s “Letter of Intent.”
1. A letter of intent expanding on the settlor’s beliefs and
philosophy about making distributions to the beneficiary
may help the corporate trustee to carry out and understand
his or her wishes. I do not know the value of having such a
letter in a situation of legal challenge. It is always better to
have any relevant language regarding discretionary
distributions directly in the document, though a letter of
intent may be persuasive when making a discretionary
distribution decision for a beneficiary.
k. Clauses That Help the Trustee Solve Discretionary Issues
1. Minnesota is not a unitrust state and the Uniform Principal
and Income Act is limited in what it can accomplish where
a document grants no access to principal or has very
8