Title 91, Trusts and Estates

(a) A vacancy in a trusteeship occurs if:(1) A person designated as trustee rejects the trusteeship;(2) A person designated as trustee cannot be identified or does not exist;(3) A trustee resigns;(4) A trustee is disqualified or removed;(5) A trustee dies; or(6) A conservator or …

(a) A trustee may resign:(1) Upon at least thirty (30) days’ notice to the qualified beneficiaries, the settlor, if living, and all cotrustees; or(2) With the approval of the court. (1) Upon at least thirty (30) days’ notice to the qualified beneficiaries, the settlor, if living,…

(a) The settlor, a cotrustee, or a beneficiary may request the court to remove a trustee, or a trustee may be removed by the court on its own initiative. (b) The court may remove a trustee if:(1) The trustee has committed a serious breach of trust;(2) Lack of cooperation among co…

(a) Unless a cotrustee remains in office or the court otherwise orders, and until the trust property is delivered to a successor trustee or other person entitled to it, a trustee who has resigned or been removed has the duties of a trustee and the powers necessary to protect the …

(a) If the terms of a trust do not specify the trustee’s, trust advisor’s, or trust protector’s compensation, and if the settlor, if living, or otherwise a majority of the qualified beneficiaries as defined in Section 91-8-103, have not otherwise agreed with the trustee, trust ad…

(a) A trustee, trust advisor, or trust protector is entitled to be reimbursed out of the trust property, with interest as appropriate, for:(1) Expenses that were properly incurred in the administration of the trust, including the defense or prosecution of any action, whether succ…

If the terms of the trust require a trustee, trust advisor, or trust protector to follow the direction of a trust advisor or trust protector, and the trustee, trust advisor, or trust protector acts in accordance with the direction, then the trustee, trust advisor, or trust protec…

(a) A trust advisor, trust protector, or other fiduciary other than a cotrustee, the cotrustee already being provided for in Section 91-8-701(a), may accept its appointment as the respective fiduciary in a like manner as provided for a trustee under Section 91-8-701(a). (b) A tru…

(a) Section 91-8-702 applies to trust advisors, trust protectors, or other fiduciaries other than cotrustees, the cotrustees already being provided for in Section 91-8-702. (b) When exercising its powers under this section, the court shall consider the powers, duties, and liabili…

(a) Except as otherwise provided by the terms of the trust upon obtaining knowledge of a vacancy in the office of trust advisor or trust protector, the trustee shall be vested with any fiduciary power or duty that otherwise would be vested in the trustee but that by the terms of …

(a) A trust advisor, trust protector, or other fiduciary other than a cotrustee, a cotrustee’s resignation already being provided for in Section 91-8-705, may resign its appointment as the respective fiduciary in a like manner as provided for a trustee under Section 91-8-705. (b)…

(a) A trust advisor, trust protector, or other fiduciary other than a cotrustee, a cotrustee’s removal already being provided for in Section 91-8-706, may be removed as the respective fiduciary in a like manner as provided for a trustee under Section 91-8-706. (b) When exercising…

Upon acceptance of a trusteeship, the trustee shall administer the trust until such time as the trust terminates or a successor trustee is appointed and all assets are delivered in good faith, in accordance with its terms and purposes and the interests of the beneficiaries, and i…

(a) A trustee shall administer the trust solely in the interests of the beneficiaries. (b) Subject to the rights of persons dealing with or assisting the trustee as provided in Section 91-8-1012 or as may otherwise be allowed under Mississippi law, a sale, encumbrance, or other t…

If a trust has two (2) or more beneficiaries, the trustee shall act impartially in investing, managing, and distributing the trust property, giving due regard to the beneficiaries’ respective interests and the purposes of the trust.

A trustee shall administer the trust as a prudent person would, by considering the purposes, terms, distributional requirements, and other circumstances of the trust. In satisfying this standard, the trustee shall exercise reasonable care, skill, and caution.

In administering a trust, the trustee may incur only costs that are reasonable in relation to the trust property, the purposes of the trust, and the skills of the trustee.

A trustee who has special skills or expertise, or is named trustee in reliance upon the trustee’s representation that the trustee has special skills or expertise, shall use those special skills or expertise.

(a) A trustee may delegate duties and powers that a prudent trustee could properly delegate under the circumstances. The trustee shall exercise reasonable care, skill, and caution in:(1) Selecting an agent;(2) Establishing the scope and terms of the delegation, consistent with th…

(a) While a trust is revocable, the trustee may follow a direction of the settlor that is contrary to the terms of the trust or contrary to the normal practice of the trustee in regard to the action requested. (b) If the terms of a trust confer upon a person other than the settlo…

A trustee shall take reasonable steps to take control of and protect the trust property.

(a) A trustee shall keep adequate records of the administration of the trust. (b) A trustee shall keep trust property separate from the trustee’s own property. (c) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d), a trustee shall cause the trust property to be designated so that th…

(a) A trustee shall take reasonable steps to enforce claims of the trust and to defend claims against the trust. (b) A trustee may abandon or assign any claim that it believes is unreasonable to enforce to one or more of the beneficiaries of the trust holding the claim.

A trustee shall take reasonable steps to compel a former trustee or other person to deliver trust property to the trustee, and to redress a breach of trust known to the trustee to have been committed by a former trustee. No successor trustee appointed after the examination of the…

(a) (1) A trustee shall keep the beneficiaries of the trust that are current mandatory or permissible distributees of trust income or principal, or both, reasonably informed about the administration of the trust and of the material facts necessary for them to protect their intere…

(a) Relative to exercise of powers over discretionary and other interests:(1) “Improper motive” means to demonstrate action such as the following:(A) A trustee refusing to make or limiting distributions to beneficiaries other than the trustee due to the trustee’s self-interest wh…

(a) A trustee, without authorization by the court, may exercise:(1) Powers conferred by the terms of the trust; and(2) Except as limited by the terms of the trust:(A) All powers over the trust property which an unmarried competent owner has over individually owned property;(B) An…

(a) Any references contained in a will or trust incorporating by reference the powers enumerated in Section 91-9-101 et seq. will incorporate by reference the powers contained in this section. (b) Unless the terms of the instrument expressly provide otherwise and without limiting…

(a) Upon termination or partial termination of a trust, the trustee may send to the beneficiaries a proposal for distribution. The right of any beneficiary to object to the proposed distribution terminates if the beneficiary does not notify the trustee of an objection within thir…

Title 91, Chapter 9, Article 13, the Mississippi Uniform Prudent Investor Act, is incorporated in this chapter by reference.

(a) A violation by a trustee of a duty the trustee owes to a beneficiary is a breach of trust. (b) To remedy a breach of trust that has occurred or may occur, the court may:(1) Compel the trustee to perform the trustee’s duties;(2) Enjoin the trustee from committing a breach of t…

(a) A trustee who commits a breach of trust is liable to the beneficiaries affected for:(1) The greater of:(A) The amount required to restore the value of the trust property and trust distributions to what they would have been had the breach not occurred; or(B) The profit the tru…

Absent a breach of trust, a trustee is not liable to a beneficiary for a loss or depreciation in the value of trust property or for not having made a profit.

(a) In a judicial proceeding involving the administration of a trust, the court, as justice and equity may require, may award costs and expenses, including reasonable attorney’s fees, to any party, to be paid by another party or from the trust that is the subject of the controver…

(a) A beneficiary may not commence a proceeding against a trustee for breach of trust more than one (1) year after the date the beneficiary or a representative of the beneficiary was sent a report that adequately disclosed the existence of a potential claim for breach of trust. (…

A trustee who acts in reasonable reliance on the terms of the trust as expressed in the trust instrument is not liable to a beneficiary for a breach of trust to the extent the breach resulted from the reliance.

If the happening of an event, including marriage, divorce, performance of educational requirements, or death, affects the administration or distribution of a trust, a trustee who has exercised reasonable care to ascertain the happening of the event is not liable for a loss result…

(a) A provision of a trust relieving a trustee of liability for breach of trust is unenforceable to the extent that it:(1) Relieves the trustee of liability for breach of trust committed in bad faith or with reckless indifference to the purposes of the trust or the interests of t…

(1) A trustee is not liable to a beneficiary for breach of trust if the beneficiary consented to the conduct constituting the breach, released the trustee from liability for the breach, or ratified the transaction constituting the breach, unless:(1) The consent, release, or ratif…

(a) Except as otherwise provided in the contract, a trustee is not personally liable on a contract properly entered into in the trustee’s fiduciary capacity in the course of administering the trust if the trustee in the contract disclosed the fiduciary capacity. (b) Except as oth…

(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (c) or unless personal liability is imposed in the contract, a trustee who holds an interest as a general partner in a general or limited partnership is not personally liable on a contract entered into by the partnership after the tr…

(a) A person other than a beneficiary who in good faith assists a trustee, or who in good faith and for value deals with a trustee, without actual knowledge that the trustee is exceeding or improperly exercising the trustee’s powers is protected from liability as if the trustee p…

(a) Instead of furnishing a copy of the trust instrument to any person to evidence the existence and validity of the trust, the trustee may furnish to the person a certification of trust, signed by the trustee or trustees having signature authority as identified in paragraph (6) …

(a) For the purposes of this section, “no-contest provision” includes a “no-contest provision,” “in terrorem provision” or “forfeiture provision” of a trust instrument. A “no-contest provision” means a provision that, if given effect, would reduce or eliminate the interest of any…

In applying and construing this chapter, consideration must be given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with respect to its subject matter among states that enact it.

The provisions of this chapter governing the legal effect, validity, or enforceability of electronic records or electronic signatures, and of contracts formed or performed with the use of such records or signatures, conform to the requirements of Section 102 of the Electronic Sig…