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<section article="get" article_name="Estates and Trusts" number="14-403" title_number="14" title_name="Trusts" subtitle_number="4" subtitle_name="Maryland Discretionary Trust Act">
  <level label="a">
    <text>Any person having the right to transfer property to another person may create a trust as a transferor under this subtitle.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="b">
    <text>The transferor may:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>As declarant serve as trustee;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>Designate a trustee;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>Designate how the trustee will be chosen;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="4">
      <text>Designate successor trustees in the order in which they will serve; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="5">
      <text>Designate how successor trustees will be chosen.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="c">
    <text>The trustee shall hold, manage, expend, and transfer trust property as provided in this subtitle.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="d">
    <text>The successor trustee shall assume the responsibilities of the trustee when the trustee is no longer willing or able to serve.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="e">
    <text>A trust may have only one beneficiary but more than one trustee.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="f">
    <text>A trustee:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>Is not personally liable to a third person:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>On a contract properly entered into in a fiduciary capacity unless the trustee fails to reveal that capacity or to identify the trust in the contract; or</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>For an obligation arising from control of trust property or for a tort committed in the course of the administration of the trust, unless the trustee is personally at fault;</text>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>May decline to serve as trustee before accepting trust property by notifying in writing the person who designated the trustee, or that person’s legal representative; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>May resign as trustee by notifying the successor trustee in writing, transferring all trust property to the successor trustee, providing the successor trustee with a complete accounting of trust property, and confirming that the successor trustee has accepted the trust property.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="g">
    <text>The next willing successor trustee in line shall accept the records and trust property and become trustee as soon as practicable after:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>The resignation of the trustee;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>The declination of the trustee;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>The death of the trustee; or</text>
    </level>
    <level label="4">
      <text>The removal of the trustee.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="h">
    <text>If the trustee is unable or unwilling to serve and no successor trustee will serve, the following persons in the order listed may petition the court to designate a successor trustee:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>The transferor or the legal representative of the transferor;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>The trustee;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>The beneficiary or the beneficiary’s legal representative;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="4">
      <text>The guardian of the person of the beneficiary;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="5">
      <text>An adult member of the beneficiary’s family or that family member’s legal representative; or</text>
    </level>
    <level label="6">
      <text>A person interested in the trust property or a person interested in the welfare of the beneficiary, either of whom the court determines to have a legitimate interest.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="i">
    <text>Unless renounced by the transferor, the transferor may at any time remove or change the designation of the trustee and successor trustees.</text>
  </level>
</section>
