I hear a version of this story often: a parent dies, a trust was set up to benefit several children, and one sibling — the one named as trustee — quietly takes control of the assets and stops communicating. Maybe there's an occasional check that arrives late, or no distributions at all, or vague answers whenever anyone asks how much is left in the trust. The other beneficiaries suspect something is wrong, but they have no paperwork, no numbers, and no idea what the trustee has actually done with the money.
This situation comes across my desk constantly in my New York estate litigation practice, and the good news is that beneficiaries are not powerless. New York law gives you a clear path to force a trustee to open the books. It starts with a formal demand and, if that fails, moves into Surrogate's Court through a specific statutory procedure. Below, I'll walk through how that process actually works, what a proper accounting has to include, and what happens if the numbers reveal that the trustee did something they shouldn't have.
A Trustee's Duty to Account
A trustee is not a free agent with the trust's assets. The moment someone accepts the role of trustee, they take on a fiduciary duty — the highest duty the law recognizes — to the beneficiaries of that trust. Part of that duty is substantive: managing assets prudently, avoiding conflicts of interest, and acting solely in the beneficiaries' interest. But part of it is informational, and that's the piece people often overlook. A trustee must keep beneficiaries reasonably informed about the trust and must be prepared to account for how they have administered it.
This obligation isn't just something judges have inferred from general principles of fairness, though it is rooted in longstanding common law fiduciary doctrine. It is also written into New York statute. EPTL Article 11, which governs the powers and duties of fiduciaries, reinforces that a trustee holds assets for the benefit of others and must be accountable for their stewardship of trust property. If you want a deeper look at what fiduciary duty actually requires of a trustee day to day, I've written more on that in Understanding Fiduciary Duty in New York.
In practice, this means a beneficiary is entitled to know what's in the trust, what income it has earned, what's been distributed, and what fees or commissions the trustee has taken. A trustee who stonewalls that basic information isn't just being difficult — they are potentially violating a legal duty.
Step 1: The Demand Letter
Before anyone runs to court, the first practical step is almost always a formal written demand for an accounting. This is a letter, typically drafted by an attorney, sent directly to the trustee (and often to the trustee's counsel, if they have one) that clearly states the beneficiary's right to information under the trust instrument and New York law, and requests a full accounting within a specified, reasonable period of time.
A well-drafted demand letter does a few things. It puts the trustee on notice that the beneficiary is serious and knows their rights. It creates a paper trail showing exactly when the request was made, which matters later if the case ends up in court. And, frankly, it sometimes works on its own — a trustee who has been sloppy but not dishonest will often produce records once they realize a beneficiary isn't going to simply drop the matter.
Practical tip: Always put your demand for an accounting in writing and keep a copy. If the matter later goes to Surrogate's Court, having a dated demand letter that the trustee ignored or refused strengthens your position and can help establish exactly when the trustee's delay or noncompliance began.
Not every trustee needs to be pushed into a demand letter, of course. Some trustees do the right thing on their own and voluntarily file what's called an accounting under SCPA 2208 — essentially a proactive, informal accounting a fiduciary chooses to submit for court approval, often to get a clean release from liability. But when a trustee has gone silent or brushed off requests for information, a demand letter is the necessary first move before escalating.
Step 2: Petitioning to Compel an Accounting Under SCPA 2205
If the trustee ignores the demand letter, stalls indefinitely, or flatly refuses to account, the next step is filing a petition in Surrogate's Court to compel an accounting. This is where SCPA 2205 comes in. This statute is the mechanism that allows a beneficiary — or another interested party — to ask the court to direct a fiduciary, whether that's a trustee, an executor, or an administrator, to account when they have not done so voluntarily.
The petition explains who the petitioner is, what their interest in the trust is, what efforts were made to obtain an accounting informally (this is where that demand letter becomes useful evidence), and why judicial intervention is now necessary. Once the petition is filed, the court issues a citation — a formal court order directing the trustee to appear and account within a set period of time. This citation is typically served on the trustee, and once it's in hand, ignoring the matter is no longer really an option. Failing to comply with a court-ordered citation can expose a trustee to contempt proceedings and other consequences well beyond the discomfort of simply producing records.
Getting to this point sometimes exposes deeper problems than just an uncommunicative trustee. If the underlying issue isn't just poor communication but genuine misconduct or an unwillingness to ever cooperate, a beneficiary may need to pursue removal of the trustee alongside or instead of simply compelling an accounting — a topic I cover in detail in Removing a Trustee in New York. These proceedings frequently move forward together, since a trustee's refusal to account is often one of the clearest indicators that removal may be warranted.
What a Formal Accounting Must Show
Once a trustee is compelled to account, they can't simply hand over a bank statement or a rough summary. New York requires a formal accounting to follow a structured format, organized into specific schedules that together reconstruct the trust's entire financial history for the accounting period.
A proper formal accounting must show, among other things:
- All trust principal on hand at the start of the accounting period
- All additional principal received during the period, including from investments, sales of assets, or other sources
- All income earned by the trust, such as interest, dividends, and rental income
- Every disbursement made from the trust, including expenses, taxes, and administrative costs
- Every distribution made to beneficiaries
- Trustee commissions taken during the period
- The balance of principal and income remaining on hand at the end of the period
This is not a casual exercise. A formal account is essentially a full financial reconstruction, schedule by schedule, of everything that happened to the trust's assets over the relevant time frame. It has to reconcile — the numbers have to add up from where the trust started to where it ended, with every transaction accounted for in between. This level of detail exists precisely so that beneficiaries and the court can actually evaluate whether the trustee managed the trust properly, rather than simply taking the trustee's word for it.
If you're a beneficiary who has never seen the trust instrument or any records at all, this can be a lot to absorb once it finally arrives. It's worth having an attorney experienced in wills and trusts review the account with you, since spotting irregularities in a dense set of schedules is exactly the kind of work that benefits from experience.
Filing Objections to the Account
Once the trustee files the formal account with the Surrogate's Court, beneficiaries have the right to review every schedule in detail. If something doesn't look right — a distribution that seems too large or too small, commissions that appear inflated, an asset that seems to have vanished, or a transaction that suggests the trustee benefited personally — a beneficiary can file formal objections to that specific line item or transaction.
This is the point where an accounting proceeding can turn into something that looks and feels a great deal like full-blown litigation. Common grounds for objections include:
- Excessive or unjustified trustee commissions
- Self-dealing, such as the trustee transacting with the trust for personal benefit
- Improper or imprudent investments that caused losses
- Missing or unaccounted-for assets
- Unequal or improper distributions among beneficiaries
Once objections are filed, the matter becomes a contested accounting proceeding. That can mean discovery — document demands, interrogatories — and depositions of the trustee and possibly other witnesses, followed by a hearing before the Surrogate if the parties can't resolve the dispute beforehand. Many contested accountings do settle once both sides see the full financial picture and understand their exposure, but you should go into the process assuming it may be fully litigated.
What Happens If the Trustee Breached Their Duty
If the evidence and the accounting itself show that the trustee breached their fiduciary duty, New York courts have real tools to address it. When a trustee has mismanaged trust assets, commingled trust funds with their own money, favored one beneficiary over others, or engaged in self-dealing, the court can surcharge the trustee — meaning the trustee is held personally financially responsible for reimbursing the trust for the losses their conduct caused. This isn't a slap on the wrist; a surcharge can require a trustee to pay out of their own pocket to make the trust whole again.
Beyond a surcharge, a trustee found to have breached their duty can also be denied the commissions they would otherwise be entitled to — essentially forfeiting payment for their service as trustee — and, in more serious cases, can be removed as trustee entirely. Removal ensures that someone who has demonstrated they cannot be trusted with the role no longer controls the remaining trust assets going forward. In many of the cases I've handled, a badly deficient accounting is what first reveals the need for removal, and the two issues end up being litigated together.
These remedies exist because the accounting process isn't just paperwork — it's the mechanism that makes fiduciary duty enforceable. Without the ability to compel an accounting and challenge what it shows, a trustee's obligations would be little more than words on paper.
Don't Wait Too Long to Act
One point I stress to every client who suspects a trustee is mishandling trust assets: don't sit on it. New York courts can apply the doctrine of laches, an equitable principle that can bar claims a party waited too long to bring, particularly where the delay has prejudiced the trustee or other parties. Beyond the legal risk of laches, practical problems compound with time — records get harder to obtain, memories fade, assets get spent or moved, and tracing exactly where trust funds went becomes far more difficult the longer you wait.
If you have concerns about how a trust is being administered, or a trustee has gone quiet when you've asked for information, it's worth having the situation evaluated promptly rather than hoping things resolve on their own. Whether the right next step is a demand letter, a petition under SCPA 2205, or a broader look at the trust and your rights as a beneficiary under estate planning and probate law, acting early preserves your options and your ability to recover what may be owed to you. If you have questions about compelling a trust accounting in New York, I offer a free consultation to discuss your situation and outline the best path forward.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a beneficiary have a right to an accounting in New York?
Yes. A trustee owes beneficiaries a fiduciary duty to keep them reasonably informed about the trust and to account for their administration of it, a duty grounded in both common law and New York's EPTL Article 11. If a trustee won't provide information voluntarily, a beneficiary can compel an accounting through Surrogate's Court.
What is SCPA 2205?
SCPA 2205 is the New York statute that allows a beneficiary or other interested party to petition the Surrogate's Court to direct a fiduciary, such as a trustee, executor, or administrator, to file a formal accounting when they have not done so voluntarily. The court can respond by issuing a citation ordering the trustee to account within a set time.
What must a formal trust accounting show?
A formal accounting must include structured schedules showing all principal and income received, all disbursements and distributions made, trustee commissions taken, and the balance remaining on hand. It functions as a complete financial reconstruction of the trust's activity for the accounting period.
How do you object to a trustee's accounting?
Once a trustee files a formal account, beneficiaries can review every schedule and file formal objections to specific transactions they believe were improper, such as excessive fees, self-dealing, or missing assets. This turns the case into a contested accounting proceeding that can involve discovery, depositions, and a hearing.
What happens if a trustee breached their fiduciary duty?
If a court finds the trustee breached their duty, such as through mismanagement, commingling funds, or self-dealing, the trustee can be surcharged and held personally liable to reimburse the trust for losses. The trustee can also be denied commissions and removed from their role.
