2009 Iowa Code
Title 15 - Judicial Branch and Judicial Procedures
Subtitle 4 - Probate - Fiduciaries
CHAPTER 633A - IOWA TRUST CODE
633A.4213 - DUTY TO INFORM AND ACCOUNT.

        633A.4213  DUTY TO INFORM AND ACCOUNT.
         A trustee of an irrevocable trust shall keep the qualified
      beneficiaries of the trust reasonably informed about the
      administration of the trust and the material facts necessary to
      protect the beneficiaries' interests.
         1.  The trustee shall inform each qualified beneficiary of the
      beneficiary's right to receive an annual accounting and a copy of the
      trust instrument.  The trustee shall also inform each qualified
      beneficiary about the process necessary to obtain an annual
      accounting or a copy of the trust instrument, if not provided.  The
      trustee shall further inform each qualified beneficiary whether the
      beneficiary will, or will not, receive an annual accounting if the
      beneficiary fails to take any action.  If a qualified beneficiary has
      previously been provided the notice required by this section,
      additional notice shall not be required due to a change of trustees
      or a change in the composition of the qualified beneficiaries.
         2.  The trustee shall provide the notice required in subsection 1
      to each qualified beneficiary within a reasonable time following any
      of the following events:
         a.  The commencement of the trust administration.
         b.  The trustee becoming aware that there is a new qualified
      beneficiary or a representative of any minor or incompetent
      beneficiary.
         c.  The trust becoming irrevocable.
         d.  The time that no person, except the trustee, has the right
      to change the beneficiaries of the trust.
         3.  Except as provided in subsection 4, a trustee shall provide
      annually to each adult beneficiary and the representative of any
      minor or incompetent beneficiary who may receive a distribution of
      income or principal during the accounting time period, an accounting,
      unless an accounting has been waived specifically for that accounting
      time period.
         4.  If a settlor has retained the right to change the
      beneficiaries of the trust or if a party is the holder of a presently
      exercisable general power of appointment, the trustee shall only be
      required to report to the settlor or the party.
         5.  The only consequence to a trustee's failure to provide a
      required accounting or notice is that the trustee shall not be able
      to rely upon the statute of limitations under section 633A.4504.  If
      the trustee has refused, after a reasonable request, to provide an
      accounting to a qualified beneficiary, the court may assess costs,
      including attorney fees, against the trustee personally.
         6.  The format and content of an accounting required by this
      section shall be within the discretion of the trustee, as long as
      sufficient to reasonably inform the beneficiary of the condition and
      activities of the trust during the accounting period.
         7.  This section does not apply to any trust created prior to July
      1, 2002.  This section applies to any trust created on or after July
      1, 2002, unless the settlor has specifically waived the requirements
      of this section in the trust instrument.  Waiver of this section
      shall not bar any beneficiary's common-law right to an accounting,
      and shall not provide any immunity to a trustee, acting under the
      terms of the trust, for liability to any beneficiary who discovers
      facts giving rise to a cause of action against the trustee.  

         Section History: Recent Form

         99 Acts, ch 125, §59, 109
         C2001, §633.4213
         2001 Acts, ch 176, §78; 2002 Acts, ch 1107, §12; 2002 Acts, ch
      1175, §93; 2003 Acts, ch 95, §15; 2005 Acts, ch 38, §54, 55
         CS2005, §633A.4213
         2006 Acts, ch 1104, §12, 13, 16
         Referred to in § 633A.4202, 633A.4502, 633A.5107 

         Footnotes

         2006 amendments apply to trust accounting periods ending on or
      after July 1, 2006; 2006 Acts, ch 1104, §16