Trustee Notice to Beneficiaries Requirements in Michigan

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Michigan uses two 63-day notices with different start facts

For an irrevocable trust, MCL § 700.7814(2)(b) starts the acceptance clock when the trustee accepts the trusteeship under the methods in § 700.7701. Within 63 days, the trustee notifies qualified trust beneficiaries of the acceptance, the court in which the trust is registered if it is registered, and the trustee's name, address, and telephone number.

Section 700.7814(2)(c) uses a knowledge rule. Its 63 days begin when the trustee acquires knowledge that an irrevocable trust was created or that a formerly revocable trust became irrevocable, whether through the settlor's death or another event. That notice states the trust's existence, identifies the settlor or settlors, identifies the registration court if any, and explains the right to request the trust terms that describe or affect the beneficiary's interest.

The qualified-beneficiary definition begins with settlor purpose

MCL § 700.7103(g)(i) first asks whether the settlor intended to benefit the person as a material purpose of the trust. Within that group, the statute reaches current distributees, the next-line distributees if current interests ended without ending the trust, and those who would take if the trust terminated.

Only when no beneficiary satisfies that material-purpose route does § 700.7103(g)(ii) use the same three horizons without the material-purpose condition. A remote contingent beneficiary is therefore not automatically a qualified trust beneficiary merely because that person appears somewhere in the instrument.

A nondisclosure trust redirects the notices temporarily

MCL § 700.7409a lets a noncharitable trust instrument clearly direct that prime disclosure information be withheld during a nondisclosure period. For that period, the ordinary § 700.7814(2)(a)-(c) disclosure and notice duties may be withheld from beneficiaries to the extent needed to carry out the settlor's direction.

If the instrument grants a nondisclosure correlative right or protection power, the trustee sends those holders the same core notices within 63 days. When the period ends, inconsistent trust terms cease to operate. If the ordinary notice has not already been given, the trustee is then deemed to have accepted and learned of the trust's creation, starting the ordinary notice process. The maximum nondisclosure period is 25 years from the later of the first trust property becoming subject to the terms or the trust becoming irrevocable, and the period ends sooner if the trust terminates.

Delivery and waiver rules answer different questions

MCL § 700.7109 requires a method reasonably suitable under the circumstances and likely to result in receipt. It lists first-class mail, personal delivery, delivery to the last known residence or business, and a properly directed and identified fax or electronic message. A person whose identity or location is unknown and not reasonably ascertainable need not receive an otherwise required notice or document.

Section 700.7109(3) requires a writing when the person waives notice under the article. Section 700.7814(5), by contrast, lets a trust beneficiary waive reports or other information under that section and withdraw the waiver for future items; it does not prescribe a writing. Trust terms cannot override the core § 700.7814(2)(a)-(c) duties except through the statutory nondisclosure regime.

What trips people up

• Acceptance and irrevocability use different start rules. Acceptance starts its own clock; the creation-or-irrevocability clock waits for the trustee's knowledge.
• Registration information is conditional. The notice identifies a court only if the trust is registered.
• The copy right is limited to affecting terms. The statute calls for the terms that describe or affect the beneficiary's interest, not an automatic full- instrument attachment to the initial notice.
• The two 63-day paragraphs have a legacy boundary. Under § 700.7814(6), they apply only when acceptance, creation, or irrevocability occurred on or after April 1, 2010.
• No oath, notarization, or proof-of-service certificate appears in the notice statutes. Section 700.7109 governs delivery without imposing those formalities.

Common questions

Does every trust beneficiary receive both notices?

No. The ordinary recipient class is qualified trust beneficiaries as defined in § 700.7103(g), including its material-purpose screen and conditional fallback. The separate ongoing report rule in § 700.7814(3) uses different recipient categories and should not be substituted for the two initial-notice lists.

Does the ordinary 63-day notice start a six-month trust-contest deadline?

Not by itself. MCL § 700.7604(1)(b) requires seven items before the six-month period can apply: trust existence, instrument date, known amendment dates, a copy of the relevant affecting terms, settlor name, trustee name and address, and the time allowed to sue. A bare § 700.7814 notice lacks several of those items.

Who receives information if the settlor becomes incapacitated while the trust is revocable?

MCL § 700.7603(2) directs the trustee to keep the settlor's designated agent informed. If there is no designated agent, or the sole agent is a trustee, the duty instead runs to each beneficiary who would be a qualified trust beneficiary if the settlor were then deceased.

Do nondisclosure right and power holders have qualified-beneficiary rights?

Under current MCL § 700.7110(3), yes, during the nondisclosure period. Pending HB 4523 would let the trust terms provide otherwise, although § 700.7409a's direct 63-day notices to those holders would remain.

Statutes and sources

• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7103(g) — material-purpose screen, three distribution horizons, and fallback definition. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7105(1), (2)(j)-(k) — default rules, mandatory core information and notice, nondisclosure exception, and court authority. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7109(1)-(4) — delivery, unknown recipients, written notice waiver, and judicial notice. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7110(3) — nondisclosure right and power holders treated as qualified trust beneficiaries under current law. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7409a(1)(a)(i), (2)-(5) — nondisclosure exception, alternate recipients, 63-day clocks, end-of-period restart, maximum period, and definitions. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7603(1)-(2) — revocable-settlor control and the incapacitated-settlor information rule. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7604(1)-(2) — trust-contest periods and the separate seven-item notice. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7701(1)-(3) — acceptance, rejection, and property- preservation acts without acceptance. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).
• Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7814(1)-(6) — initial notices, required contents, information and report duties, waiver, and legacy boundary. Official Michigan Compiled Laws (accessed 2026-07-31).