Certification of Trust Requirements in Georgia

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Georgia separates a permissive fact list from a mandatory execution core

Under O.C.G.A. § 53-12-280(a), a trustee may present a certification to any person other than a beneficiary instead of the trust instrument to establish the existence of trust provisions.

Subsection (b) says the certification shall contain “some or all” of eight listed items. Those permissive choices cover the trust and amendment dates; each settlor; each current trustee and address; the number and identity of trustees needed to act; relevant powers and restrictions; revocability; title format; whether the transaction needs anyone else's consent or action; and other information the trustee considers appropriate. The list does not require a taxpayer identification number.

Subsection (c) supplies the mandatory core: every trustee signs, and the document states that no revocation, modification, or amendment makes its representations incorrect. Dispositive provisions need not be included.

Every trustee signs, and current law permits electronic execution

Section 53-12-280(c)(1) requires the certification to be signed by each trustee. That signer count does not change merely because subsection (b)(3) permits the document to say that fewer trustees may exercise a particular trust power.

Current § 53-12-512 expressly applies to certifications under § 53-12-280. It says an electronic record or signature cannot be denied effect solely because it is electronic, an electronic signature satisfies a written-signature requirement, and attribution turns on whether it was the person's act in context. Section 53-12-280 itself states no oath, penalty-of-perjury declaration, acknowledgment, notarization, or witness requirement.

Excerpts, reliance, and improper-demand consequences are separate

Section 53-12-280(d) lets the recipient require excerpts from the original trust and amendments that designate the trustee and confer power for the pending transaction. It does not create a routine right to every dispositive provision.

Under subsection (e), a person who relies without knowledge that information is incorrect is protected from liability and may assume the information is correct without inquiry. Subsection (f) makes a good-faith transaction enforceable as if the certification were correct.

If a court finds that a demand for the full trust instrument in addition to the certification or excerpts lacked good faith, subsection (g) creates damages liability including court costs and attorney's fees. Subsection (h) preserves access to the full instrument in a judicial proceeding concerning the trust.

Recording is optional and has a narrow express effect

Section 53-12-280(i) says a certification “in recordable form may be recorded” in the office of the clerk of superior court. It does not require recording, name a county based on trust property, or state that recording itself transfers title or creates constructive notice of the certification's facts.

What trips people up

• The eight-item list is not wholly mandatory. “Some or all” is different from the mandatory no-change statement and every-trustee signature rule in subsection (c).
• Transaction authority does not reduce the signer count. A trust may let fewer trustees act on a transaction, but every trustee still signs this certification.
• Permission to record is not a stated notice rule. Subsection (i) authorizes filing a recordable-form certification but does not spell out a notice or priority consequence.

Common questions

Must the certification include every fact listed in subsection (b)?

No. Section 53-12-280(b) says it shall contain “some or all” of the listed information. The separate signature and no-change requirements in subsection (c) remain mandatory.

May the trustees sign electronically?

Yes, when the signature is validly attributable under § 53-12-512. That 2025 law expressly includes certifications under § 53-12-280 and protects electronic records and signatures from being denied effect solely because of their form.

Does the certification need a notary or sworn declaration?

Not under § 53-12-280. It requires every trustee's signature but states no oath, penalty-of-perjury, acknowledgment, or notarization requirement. Separate recording formalities may determine whether a particular document is in recordable form.

Can the recipient demand the complete trust instrument?

The statute permits focused trustee-designation and transaction-power excerpts. A bad-faith demand for more can produce damages, costs, and attorney's fees, while a judicial proceeding concerning the trust remains an express route to the full instrument.

Statutes and sources

• O.C.G.A. § 53-12-280(a)–(c) — availability, permissive contents, every-trustee signatures, mandatory no-change statement, and omitted dispositive provisions. Public-domain Official Code distribution (accessed 2026-07-31).
• O.C.G.A. § 53-12-280(d)–(i) — focused excerpts, reliance, enforcement, bad-faith-demand damages and fees, judicial access, and optional recording. Public-domain Official Code distribution (accessed 2026-07-31).
• O.C.G.A. § 53-12-512(a), (d)–(e) — current electronic-record, electronic-signature, and attribution rules expressly covering certifications. Official signed 2025 HB 327 (accessed 2026-07-31).