§554B-13 Declination, resignation, incapacity, death, or removal of custodial trustee; designation of successor custodial trustee. (a) A person designated as custodial trustee, before accepting the custodial trust property, may decline to serve by notifying the person who made the designation, the transferor, or the transferor's legal representative. If the event giving rise to a transfer has not occurred, the substitute custodial trustee designated under section 554B-3 becomes the custodial trustee, and, if a substitute custodial trustee has not been designated, the person who made the designation may designate a substitute custodial trustee under section 554B-3. In other cases, the transferor or the transferor's legal representative may designate a substitute custodial trustee.

(b) A custodial trustee who has accepted the custodial trust property may resign by:

(1) Delivering written notice to the beneficiary and, if the beneficiary is incapacitated, to the beneficiary's conservator, if any, and to the successor custodial trustee, if any; and

(2) Transferring, recording, or registering the custodial trust property in the name of and delivering the records to the successor custodial trustee identified under subsection (c).

(c) If a custodial trustee or successor custodial trustee is ineligible, resigns, dies, or becomes incapacitated, the successor designated under section 554B-2 or 554B-3 becomes custodial trustee. If there is no effective provision for a successor, the beneficiary, if not incapacitated, may designate a successor custodial trustee. If the beneficiary is incapacitated, or fails to act within ninety days after the ineligibility, resignation, death, or incapacity of the custodial trustee, the beneficiary's conservator becomes successor custodial trustee; and, if the beneficiary does not have a conservator or the conservator declines to act, the resigning custodial trustee may designate a successor custodial trustee.

(d) If a successor custodial trustee is not designated by the foregoing procedure, the transferor, the legal representative of the transferor or of the custodial trustee, an adult member of the beneficiary's family, the guardian of the beneficiary, a person interested in the custodial trust property or as appropriate, another person interested in the welfare of the beneficiary may petition the court to designate a successor custodial trustee.

(e) A custodial trustee who declines to serve or resigns, or the legal representative of a deceased or incapacitated custodial trustee, as soon as practicable, shall put the custodial trust property and records in the possession and control of the successor custodial trustee. A successor custodial trustee may enforce the obligation to deliver custodial trust property and records, and becomes responsible for each item as received.

(f) A beneficiary, the beneficiary's conservator, an adult member of the beneficiary's family, the beneficiary's guardian, a person interested in the custodial trust property or as appropriate, or another person interested in the welfare of the beneficiary, may petition the court to remove the custodial trustee for cause and designate a successor custodial trustee, to require the custodial trustee to give bond, or for other appropriate relief. [L 1989, c 76, pt of §1; am L 2004, c 161, §23]