Section 13.36.185. Tort liability of trust.

   (a) If a trustee or a predecessor of the trustee incurs personal liability for a tort committed in the course of the trustee's administration, the trustee in the trustee's representative capacity may be sued and collection made from the trust property if the court determines in the tort action that
        (1) the trustee or the trustee's predecessor, or an officer or employee of the trustee or the trustee's predecessor, was not guilty of personal fault in incurring the liability; or
        (2) although the tort does not fall under (1) of this subsection, the tort increased the value of the trust property.
   (b) If the tort is within (a)(1) of this section, the full amount of proven damages may be collected from the trust property.
   (c) If the tort is within (a)(2) of this section, collection may not be made from the trust property except to the extent of the increase in the value of the trust property.
   (d) A beneficiary may intervene in an action under this section and contest the right of the plaintiff to recover.
   (e) In an action against the trustee in the trustee's representative capacity under this section, the plaintiff is not required to prove that the trustee could have secured reimbursement from the trust fund if the trustee paid the plaintiff's claim.
   (f) A judgment may not be rendered in favor of the plaintiff in an action under this section unless the trustee proves that within 30 days after the beginning of the action, or within another period set by the court and more than 30 days before obtaining the judgment, the trustee notifies each of the beneficiaries who is known to the trustee who then has a present interest in the existence and nature of the action. The notice shall be given by mailing copies of the notice with postage prepaid to the beneficiaries at their last known addresses. The trustee shall furnish the plaintiff with a list of names and address of the beneficiaries within 10 days after the plaintiff makes a written demand for the list. Notification of the persons on the list constitutes compliance with the duty placed on the plaintiff by this subsection.
   (g) Nothing in this section may be construed to change the existing law with regard to the liability of trustees of charitable trusts for torts of the trustees or their employees.

Notes

History

(Sec. 12 ch 105 SLA 1998)