Trust litigation in Utah runs on clocks most beneficiaries never see start. A trustee who mails you a copy of the trust with the right notice gives you 90 days to contest it, no matter how much of the three-year window is left. A trustee’s report that adequately discloses a potential breach gives you six months to sue. Both deadlines are triggered by the trustee, in writing, on the trustee’s timing. Missing either one ends the case before the merits are ever reached.

Last updated: September 2026

Key Takeaways

What Trust Litigation Covers

Section 75B-2-201(1) gives the court exclusive jurisdiction over proceedings initiated by an interested party concerning the internal affairs of trusts, and lists eight kinds of proceeding:

• appointing or removing a trustee;
• reviewing a trustee’s fees;
• reviewing and settling interim or final accounts;
• ascertaining beneficiaries;
• determining any question arising in administration or distribution, including construction of the trust instrument;
• instructing trustees;
• determining the existence or nonexistence of any immunity, power, privilege, duty, or right; and
• transferring administration of the trust to or from another state.

The most important sentence in the section is about what a proceeding does not do. Subsection (2)(a): “A proceeding under this section does not result in continuing supervision by the court over the administration of the trust.” Subsection (2)(b) then directs that administration “proceed expeditiously consistent with the terms of the trust, free of judicial intervention.” Unlike a probate estate, a trust is not under the court’s ongoing eye. Nothing gets reviewed unless someone brings it.

That absence of oversight is exactly why the trust litigation deadlines matter so much.

The Two Clocks That Decide Trust Litigation

Nearly every trust litigation case that fails in Utah fails on one of these.

Section 75B-2-1005(2) explains what “adequately disclosed” means: the report “provides sufficient information so that the beneficiary or representative knows of the potential claim or should have inquired into the claim’s existence.” A beneficiary who files an annual report unread has usually started the six months anyway. Subsection (4) preserves one route: the section “does not preclude an action to recover for fraud or misrepresentation related to the report.”

How a Trustee Starts the 90-Day Clock

Section 75B-2-604(1) requires a contest of a trust that was revocable at the settlor’s death to be commenced within the earlier of three years after that death, or 90 days after the trustee sent the person a copy of the trust instrument and a notice stating the trust’s existence, the trustee’s name and address, and the time allowed for commencing a proceeding.

All four elements are required to start trust litigation running against a contestant. A trustee who sends the trust without the notice, or a notice without the time allowed, has not started the clock.

Subsection (2) lets the trustee distribute in the meantime, without liability, unless the trustee knows of a pending contest, or a potential contestant notified the trustee and a proceeding is commenced within 60 days after that notification.

Subsection (3) is where would-be contestants lose. The trustee is only liable for actions taken two or more business days after actual receipt of written notice, and that notice must include the name of the settlor or the trust, the name of the potential contestant, and a description of the basis for the potential contest. It must be mailed to the trustee at the principal place of administration by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, or served in the same manner as a summons.

Any other form or service of notice is not sufficient to impose liability on the trustee for actions taken pursuant to the terms of the trust.

Utah Code Section 75B-2-604(3)(d)

An email, a phone call, or a lawyer’s letter by ordinary mail does not freeze distributions. If a trust is being distributed and you intend to contest it, the method of notice is not a formality.

Subsection (4) provides the backstop: a beneficiary of a trust later determined invalid is liable to return any distribution received.

Breach of Trust, and Ten Remedies

Section 75B-2-1001(1) defines the wrong simply: “A violation by a trustee of a duty the trustee owes to a beneficiary is a breach of trust.” Subsection (2) then lists what a court may do about a breach that has occurred or may occur:

1. compel the trustee to perform their duties;
2. enjoin a breach;
3. compel redress by paying money, restoring property, or other means;
4. order an accounting;
5. appoint a special fiduciary to take possession and administer the trust;
6. suspend the trustee;
7. remove the trustee under Section 75B-2-706;
8. reduce or deny the trustee’s compensation;
9. void an act, impose a lien or constructive trust, or trace and recover wrongfully disposed property or its proceeds; or
10. order any other appropriate relief.

Numbers five, six, and eight are the practical levers in most trust litigation cases. Suspension and a special fiduciary stop the bleeding while the case runs, and reducing compensation is available without proving a dollar loss.

The duties themselves live in Part 8: loyalty (Section 75B-2-802), impartiality (75B-2-803), prudent administration (75B-2-804), control and protection of trust property (75B-2-807), recordkeeping and identification of trust property (75B-2-808), enforcement and defense of claims (75B-2-809), and collecting trust property (75B-2-810).

What a Trust Litigation Claim Is Worth

Trust litigation damages are not capped at the loss. Section 75B-2-1002(1) sets them at the greater of the amount required to restore the value of the trust property and distributions to what they would have been without the breach, or “the profit the trustee made by reason of the breach.” A trustee who profits more than the trust lost pays the profit.

Subsection (2) governs cotrustees. A liable trustee is generally entitled to contribution from other liable trustees, but not if that trustee was substantially more at fault, committed the breach in bad faith or with reckless indifference, or received a benefit from the breach, to the extent of that benefit.

Section 75B-2-1003 adds a rule that catches trustees off guard: “A trustee is accountable to an affected beneficiary for any profit made by the trustee arising from the administration of the trust, even absent a breach of trust.” Subsection (2) balances it: absent a breach, a trustee is not liable for a loss or depreciation in value, or for failing to make a profit. Bad markets are not a claim. A side benefit is.

Who Pays for Trust Litigation

Section 75B-2-1004(1) is unusually broad: in a judicial proceeding involving trust administration, the court may, “as justice and equity may require, 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 controversy.”

Trust litigation fees can come out of the trust itself, which means a contest funded by the trust reduces what everyone receives.

Subsection (2) protects the trustee: a trustee who defends or prosecutes a proceeding in good faith, “whether successful or not,” is entitled to receive necessary expenses and disbursements including reasonable attorney fees from the trust. A trustee acting in good faith litigates on the trust’s money. That asymmetry is worth understanding before filing.

The Trustee’s Defenses

Five sections supply the trustee’s answer in most trust litigation.

• Reliance on the instrument. Section 75B-2-1006: a trustee acting in reasonable reliance on the terms of the trust as expressed in the instrument is not liable to the extent the breach resulted from that reliance.
• Lack of notice of an event. Section 75B-2-1007: where an event such as marriage, divorce, completion of educational requirements, or death affects administration or distribution, a trustee is not liable for a loss resulting from lack of knowledge or notice.
• Exculpation, with limits. Section 75B-2-1008 makes an exculpation clause unenforceable to the extent it relieves the trustee of liability for a breach committed in bad faith or with reckless indifference, or where it “was inserted by the trustee or fiduciary without disclosure of its existence and contents.”
• Consent, release, or ratification. Section 75B-2-1009 bars a beneficiary who, while having capacity, consented, released, or ratified, unless at that time the beneficiary did not know of their rights or of the material facts relating to the breach.
• Limits on personal liability. Section 75B-2-1010: no personal liability on a contract properly entered in a disclosed fiduciary capacity, and personal liability for torts or for obligations arising from ownership or control of trust property, including environmental liability, only if the trustee is personally at fault.

Removing a Trustee

Section 75B-2-706(1) lets the settlor, a cotrustee, or a qualified beneficiary request removal, and lets the court remove a trustee on its own initiative. Subsection (2) gives four grounds:

1. a serious breach of trust;
2. lack of cooperation among cotrustees that substantially impairs administration;
3. unfitness, unwillingness, or persistent failure to administer the trust effectively, where removal best serves the beneficiaries’ interests; or
4. a substantial change of circumstances, or a request by all qualified beneficiaries, where removal best serves all beneficiaries, is not inconsistent with a material purpose of the trust, and a suitable successor is available.

Subsection (3) is the practical one in most trust litigation: pending a final decision, or in lieu of or in addition to removal, the court may order any appropriate relief under Section 75B-2-1001(2) necessary to protect the trust property or the beneficiaries’ interests.

The Information That Starts It All

Most trust litigation begins with a trustee who simply stopped communicating. Section 75B-2-811 sets the baseline, except to the extent the trust provides otherwise.

A trustee must keep qualified beneficiaries reasonably informed about administration and the material facts they need to protect their interests, and must promptly respond to a request for information unless unreasonable. On request, the trustee must promptly furnish the portions of the instrument describing or affecting that beneficiary’s interest.

Two deadlines run at 60 days: after accepting a trusteeship, notify qualified beneficiaries of the acceptance and the trustee’s name, address, and telephone number; and after acquiring knowledge that an irrevocable trust was created, or that a formerly revocable trust has become irrevocable including by the settlor’s death, notify qualified beneficiaries of the trust’s existence, the settlor’s identity, the right to request a copy of the instrument, and the right to a report.

Subsection (2)(d) requires advance notice of any change in the method or rate of the trustee’s compensation. Subsection (3)(a) requires a report of trust property, liabilities, receipts, and disbursements, including the trustee’s compensation or a fee schedule showing how it was determined, and a listing of assets with market values where feasible, sent at least annually and at termination to qualified beneficiaries who request it. Subsection (4) lets a beneficiary waive the right to reports, and withdraw that waiver as to future reports.

Remember the connection: a report under this section is also what starts the six-month limitation in Section 75B-2-1005.

Where the Case Is Heard

Section 75B-2-202 supplies consent to Utah jurisdiction in three ways. A trustee who acts as trustee of a trust administered in Utah submits personally. Beneficiaries are subject to Utah jurisdiction to the extent of their beneficial interests, and “by accepting a distribution from such a trust, the recipient submits personally.” An agent who accepts the delegation of a trust function does the same.

Section 75B-2-204 protects foreign trusts. Over a party’s objection, the court may not entertain a Section 75B-2-201 proceeding involving a trust under the continuing supervision of a foreign court, registered in another state, or with a fiduciary transacting a major portion of administration elsewhere, unless all appropriate parties could not be bound in that state or the interests of justice would be seriously impaired.

Related reading: the irrevocable trust guide, how to fund a trust in Utah, the asset protection trust guide, the Utah living trusts guide, and the Utah estate planning guide.

Written by Jeremy Eveland, an estate planning and probate attorney licensed in Utah, Nevada, California, and Texas. He builds estate plans for Utah families from offices in Lindon and West Jordan.

This article is general information about Utah law, not legal advice for your situation. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Statutory provisions are current as of the date above.