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September/October 2026
Choosing a Trustee For a Child's Trust
Naming your spouse as trustee provides essential familial insight and continuity, but you must carefully balance these advantages against possible risks. Consider these questions. How well do you and your spouse communicate about finances? Trusts are complex. They require handling investments, taxes, and longterm wealth strategies. If you and your spouse disagree on these issues, naming them as a trustee may cause conflict. Also, consider whether they have the knowledge or experience to handle these tasks.
Does your spouse have the time for this commitment?
Serving as a trustee is demanding. Are they prepared to handle this role with their existing career, family, charitable, and personal obligations? An overloaded trustee may become stressed, leading to poor decisions that could affect your child's financial well-being.Could emotions compromise judgment?
Managing a trust can strain family bonds. Your child might sense favoritism or feel the effects of a parent-trustee's emotional choices. Contrasting parenting styles or values between spouses complicates trust management. Your trustee must act impartially, prioritizing your child's best interests.How strong is your relationship?
Divorce or conflict may impact your spouse's ability to stay impartial as a trustee. What if you disagree about distributions or stop speaking? Consider how this affects your child's trust. Does your spouse share your long-term vision for your child? The trustee must align with your goals for your child's lifestyle and education. Otherwise, their decisions may differ from your intent.Your trusted advisor can guide you through these questions. You may find that appointing a neutral party, such as a professional trustee, another family member, or a close friend, as trustee or co-trustee with your spouse is the best choice.
In 2025, appointing a trusted advisor or professional trustee as co-trustee or executor was the second most popular strategy (56% of respondents) for preventing high-net-worth family conflict— up 13 points from 2024.*
*Source: 2025 Trends in Trust and Estate Planning, wealthmanagement.com.
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Adan H. Diaz and Bryce McLeish offer products and services using the following business names: FRESCO Financial Advisers – insurance and financial services | Ameritas Investment Company, LLC (AIC), Member FINRA/SIPC – securities and investments | Ameritas Advisory Services (AAS) – investment advisory services. AIC and AAS are not affiliated with FRESCO Financial Advisers. The information you provide us is the basis for the recommendations we make to help you meet your unique financial goals and objectives. If you experience a change in your financial situation or investment objectives, or if you wish to modify or add any restrictions concerning the management of your account, please contact us. Products and services are limited to residents of states where the representative is registered. This is not an offer of securities in any jurisdiction, nor is it specifically directed to a resident of any jurisdiction. As with any security, request a prospectus from your representative. Read it carefully before you invest or send money. A representative will contact you to provide requested information. Representatives of AIC and AAS do not provide tax or legal advice. Please consult your tax advisor or attorney regarding your situation.
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