Trustees Cannot Agree: What Are Your Options?

A disagreement between trustees can prevent a will trust from functioning even where nobody alleges dishonesty. A property decision remains unresolved, records are incomplete or each trustee is waiting for the other to act.

Start by identifying the exact decision, the powers that govern it and the reason agreement has not been reached. Repeated requests to “get on with it” rarely resolve those questions.

This guide concerns private will trusts in England and Wales. If the difficulty is an executor’s handling of the estate rather than an ongoing trust, use our executor-deadlock guidance instead. The same people may hold both roles, but the powers and available procedures differ.

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An initial enquiry does not commit you to payment. Suitability and conflicts are checked before any paid work is agreed.

Must all trustees agree

For an ordinary private trust, the general rule is that trustees act unanimously unless the trust’s terms or another applicable legal provision permit a different approach. Having three trustees does not, by itself, make a two-to-one vote sufficient. ^[1]

Check the complete will or trust instrument, any incorporated provisions and later trustee appointments. A trustee’s silence should not be treated as consent. Do not assume that another trustee can be bypassed because they have stopped responding.

Identify why the decision is stuck

Ask each trustee to identify their position on the same specific proposal. For example, is the disagreement about obtaining a valuation, authorising repairs, paying a particular bill or agreeing terms for occupation?

Separate the reasons for disagreement:

Missing evidence, such as quotations, accounts or insurance terms.
Different views about the trust’s powers or the beneficiaries’ rights.
Concern about affordability, tax or personal exposure.
A conflict between a trustee’s duties and their own interests.
Non-response, illness or possible loss of capacity.

A trustee may also be a beneficiary. That does not automatically prevent them acting, but a decision benefiting them personally needs careful assessment of the trust’s provisions and conflict rules.

A practical sequence before escalation

Set out the decision in writing

Describe what needs deciding, why it matters now and the proposed options. Include the relevant clause and available evidence. Give a reasonable response date, explaining any genuine urgency without suggesting that silence authorises action.

Obtain the missing evidence

An independent valuation, repair estimate or focused legal or tax opinion may resolve the point holding everyone back. Agree the instruction, who pays and how the result will inform the decision. Advice is not a substitute for an authorised trustee decision.

Arrange a focused discussion

Circulate a short agenda and the relevant material. Keep a record of the positions, reasons, agreed actions and outstanding questions. A workable outcome may be an information exchange or timetable, rather than an immediate final settlement.

Consider negotiation or mediation

A facilitated discussion may help where direct communication has broken down. It can explore future administration arrangements as well as the immediate dispute. Any agreement must be within the parties’ powers and address whose consent or approval is required. Mediation does not itself enlarge trustee powers.

What if the problem is access to information

Distinguish a co-trustee’s need for records to discharge their duties from a beneficiary’s request for disclosure. Trustees need adequate information to administer the trust. Beneficiary disclosure requires assessment of the request, the beneficiary’s interest and any confidentiality concerns. ^[2]

Make the request specific: identify the accounts, transaction, property decision or explanation sought and why it matters. Neither every refusal nor every incomplete response establishes misconduct; assess its substance and the reason given.

Could a trustee retire or be replaced

A change in trustees may help where relationships have broken down, but first assess whether it would enable the trust to function and what additional cost it would create.

The will may contain appointment powers. Statutory routes may also apply, subject to conditions about authority, consents, the continuing trustees and formal documentation. A trustee should not assume that an email resignation ends their responsibilities. ^[3]

An independent trustee can add experience and impartiality, but has no automatic casting vote. The appointment must be valid and the decision-making rules still need to work.

If a consensual or other available non-court route is unsuitable, specialist advice may be needed about court appointment or removal. Section 41 of the Trustee Act 1925 provides a court appointment power subject to statutory conditions. ^[4]

When court advice becomes necessary

Persistent deadlock, risk to assets, serious allegations or unresolved questions about powers may require a court decision. For trusts of land, section 14 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 can provide a route concerning trustee functions or interests in the property. It does not itself authorise trustee appointment or removal. ^[5]

Court action and its costs require separate assessment. If proceedings have started, a deadline is approaching or assets are at immediate risk, obtain prompt litigation advice. Do not allow informal discussions to distract from that need.

Who pays for the advice

Do not assume that a dispute-related legal bill can be paid from the trust. A trustee’s entitlement to reimbursement depends on the nature of the work and the circumstances, including whether expenditure is properly incurred. A beneficiary’s personal advice is not automatically a trust expense. Agree responsibility for fees before instruction. ^[6]

Get an assessment of the blockage

For suitable matters, the Dispute Assessment & Action Plan costs £480 including VAT (£400 + VAT). It covers one principal issue, review of up to 40 selected core pages, a 30-minute consultation with Justin and a two-page written Action Plan.

We first check suitability, conflicts and whether the documents and issues fit that scope. Where they do not, we explain the proposed alternative scope and fee before any paid work begins.

Human Law can then quote separately for suitable correspondence or negotiation. Contested trust proceedings and ongoing trust administration are outside this service.

Email Justin at advice@human-law.co.uk with a brief outline, your role and any deadline. An enquiry does not commit you to payment. Please wait for confirmation before sending substantive or sensitive documents.

Email Justin a brief outline →Book your assessment — £480 incl. VAT

This guide provides general information for selected will trusts in England and Wales. The trust’s terms and individual circumstances determine the advice. An enquiry does not instruct Human Law or stop a deadline.

Legal sources — checked 31 October 2026.