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Checklist for Trustee's Responsibilities

To exercise care and skill (prudent person standard) in acting as trustee.
To carry out administration of the trust loyally and in good faith.
To comply with terms of the trust.
To comply with orders of the court that controls the trust estate, if any.
To not delegate other than purely ministerial powers (not even to co-trustees) unless allowed under the terms of the trust or other document.
To refrain from personal traffic in, or private use, application or appropriation of trust property, at least without express consent of the beneficiary.
To refrain from self-dealing (not to deal with yourself as an individual).
To be fair in any dealings with the beneficiary.
To take possession of and keep in your custody, the trust property (without commingling with your own property), and manage it in accordance with the trust.
To keep safely, safeguard, preserve and protect the trust property against loss, dissipation or diminution; and in order to accomplish this, to enter into proper contracts, incur debts and make expenditures where necessary and proper, and to prosecute and defend suits and proceedings in proper cases.
To carry on a business where required to do so by the trust.
To insure the trust estate.
To make improvements authorized by the trust.
To deposit trust funds in a reputable banking institution until they are invested or distributed, without commingling with the trustee's own funds.
To make the trust corpus productive.
To keep trust funds properly invested, exercising discretion reasonably, prudently, soundly and in good faith.
To exercise the care, diligence and skill of an ordinary prudent person in the making, retaining, disposing or changing of trust investments, in accordance with the trust instrument and the applicable local law.
To distribute all the trust property to the beneficiaries entitled to it and to make a full and correct accounting of the trusteeship.
To keep and render a full and accurate record and accounting of the trusteeship to the beneficiary.

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