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Trusts Act 2019

Trustees’ duties and information obligations - Trustees’ obligations to keep and give trust information - Giving information to beneficiaries

51: Presumption that trustee must notify basic trust information

You could also call this:

"Trustees must tell beneficiaries basic info about the trust, like who's in charge and what's happening"

Illustration for Trusts Act 2019

When you are a beneficiary of a trust, there is a presumption that the trustee must give you some basic information about the trust. The trustee must think about some factors set out in section 53 before deciding what to do. The trustee might decide not to give you the information if they think it is reasonable to do so.

The basic trust information includes things like the fact that you are a beneficiary, the name and contact details of the trustee, and any changes to the trustees. It also includes your right to ask for a copy of the trust's terms or other trust information. The trustee must regularly consider whether they should be giving you this basic trust information.

The trustee has to make some decisions about what information to give you and when to give it to you. They must consider your situation and the trust's situation when making these decisions. The trustee's job is to manage the trust and make decisions about what is best for the trust and its beneficiaries.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM7382940.

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50: Purpose and application of sections 51 to 55, or

"Rules to help you know what's happening in a trust and make sure it's run fairly"

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52: Presumption that trustee must give information on request, or

"Trustees must give you information if you ask, unless they have a good reason not to."

Part 3Trustees’ duties and information obligations
Trustees’ obligations to keep and give trust information: Giving information to beneficiaries

51Presumption that trustee must notify basic trust information

  1. There is a presumption that a trustee must make available to every beneficiary or representative of a beneficiary the basic trust information set out in subsection (3).

  2. However,—

  3. before giving the information, the trustee must consider the factors set out in section 53; and
    1. if the trustee reasonably considers (after taking into account those factors) that the information should not be made available to every beneficiary,—
      1. the presumption does not apply; and
        1. the trustee may decide to withhold some or all of the basic trust information from 1 or more particular beneficiaries or classes of beneficiaries.

        2. The basic trust information is—

        3. the fact that a person is a beneficiary of the trust; and
          1. the name and contact details of the trustee; and
            1. the occurrence of, and details of, each appointment, removal, and retirement of a trustee as it occurs; and
              1. the right of the beneficiary to request a copy of the terms of the trust or trust information.

                1. A trustee is required to consider at reasonable intervals whether the trustee should be making the basic trust information available under this section.