Florida’s New Designated Representative Statute

Robert Naberhaus co-authored an article that was published in the Fall edition of the electronic version of ActionLine Vol. XXXIII, No. 1 – Fall 2011. The article is entitled:

Secret Trusts: (Some) Questions and (Fewer) Answers About Florida’s New Designated Representative Statute

By Robert J. Naberhaus III, Esq. (Dean Mead) and Mark R. Parthemer, Esq. (Bessemer Trust) and Thomas C. Lee, Jr., Esq. (Gunster Yoakley).

This article discusses representation by a settlor designated representative, a new and unique provision of the Florida Trust Code allowing a settlor to appoint a person to receive trust information on behalf of and bind a trust beneficiary, even in the presence of a conflict of interest. The article explains the designated representative provision, including the rationale for its enactment and how it differs from the Uniform Trust Code. Included is a discussion of why a trust settlor may want to use a designated representative, limitations on the designated representative’s authority, liability implications for Trustees who make disclosures only to the designated representative, and more.

* Please note, this article is being reproduced with permission from the editorial team at ActionLine.