A trust is only as good as the person who runs it. You can draft a flawless revocable trust to avoid probate or an irrevocable trust for Medicaid planning, but if you name the wrong trustee, the whole structure can drift, stall, or collapse into conflict. Here are the trustee mistakes Brooklyn families make — and how to choose better.
Mistake 1: Treating a trustee like an executor
An executor’s job ends when the estate is settled, often within a year or two. A trustee’s job can last decades — managing investments, making distributions, filing trust tax returns, and exercising judgment year after year. Under EPTL Article 7, a New York trustee owes ongoing fiduciary duties to every beneficiary. The reliable cousin who could close out a simple estate may not be suited to a twenty-year commitment.
Mistake 2: Naming a beneficiary as sole trustee of an irrevocable trust
This one matters most for tax and Medicaid planning. If you create an irrevocable trust to protect assets and start the five-year Medicaid look-back, naming yourself or a beneficiary with too much control can defeat the purpose — the assets may be treated as still yours. Brooklyn families planning around long-term care costs often make this error. Choose an independent trustee, frequently an adult child who is not a primary beneficiary, or a professional.
Mistake 3: Overlooking the special needs trap
If a beneficiary receives Medicaid or SSI, an ordinary distribution can wipe out their benefits. A supplemental needs trust under EPTL §7-1.12 protects eligibility — but only if the trustee understands the rules. A well-meaning Brooklyn parent who names a sibling with no experience can accidentally trigger disqualifying distributions. The trustee of an SNT must know what they can and cannot pay for.
Mistake 4: Ignoring investment and tax competence
New York trustees are held to the prudent investor standard. They must invest reasonably, diversify, and account to beneficiaries. A trustee who parks everything in a checking account or chases speculative bets can be personally liable. If your candidate has never managed money or filed a fiduciary income tax return, pair them with a professional co-trustee or an advisor.
Mistake 5: Picking someone who can’t stay neutral
Trustees often must balance competing interests — a surviving spouse who wants income against children who want to preserve principal. If you name one child to control distributions to their siblings, resentment is almost guaranteed. For families where conflict is likely, a corporate trustee or a bank trust department brings neutrality, though they charge fees. Weigh the cost of a professional against the cost of a family rupture.
Mistake 6: Naming no successor and no removal mechanism
Trustees resign, move, age, or fall short. If your trust names only one trustee and no successor, beneficiaries may have to petition Surrogate’s Court to appoint a replacement — slow and costly. Always name successors, and consider giving beneficiaries a limited right to remove and replace a trustee for cause, with guardrails so the power isn’t abused.
Mistake 7: Forgetting a revocable trust changes hands at death
While you’re alive and competent, you’re usually your own trustee of a revocable trust. The real choice is your successor trustee — the person who steps in when you can’t. Many Brooklyn residents focus on the document and skip serious thought about who actually runs it later. That successor is the one who matters.
A note before you decide
The right trustee can carry your plan smoothly for decades; the wrong one can unravel it. Trust law in New York is technical, and the stakes — taxes, Medicaid, special needs benefits — are high. Before you name a trustee, consult a New York estate planning attorney familiar with Kings County practice to match the person to the job.
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