Idaho Trusts: An Overview of Trust Law Under Titles 15 and 68

By Ronald W. Brilliant, Attorney at Law · Licensed in Idaho, Nevada & California · Last reviewed: September 2026 against the Idaho Code (Titles 15 and 68) as posted by the Idaho Legislature (July 1, 2026)

In a trust, a trustee administers the trust for the benefit of the beneficiaries (Idaho Code § 15-7-301). Idaho’s Uniform Probate Code, in Title 15 of the Idaho Code, contains rules on how trusts are registered, which court hears trust disputes, what trustees must do, and how disagreements can be settled. Title 15 is joined by Title 68, “Trusts and Fiduciaries,” which contains more detailed trust and fiduciary rules. One of the stated purposes of the code is “to facilitate use and enforcement of certain trusts” (§ 15-1-102(b)(4)).

This overview explains those Title 15 and Title 68 rules in plain English. It is written for trustees, beneficiaries, and people who created a trust or are thinking about one. It is general information, not advice about any particular trust.

What This Overview Covers (and What It Does Not)

This overview covers the trust provisions in Title 15, mainly chapter 7 (trust administration) and chapter 8 (the Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act, or “TEDRA”) (Idaho Code § 15-8-101(1)). It also covers related rules in chapters 1 and 2 of Title 15. The code applies to “trusts subject to administration in this state” (Idaho Code § 15-1-301).

The overview also covers Title 68 of the Idaho Code, titled “Trusts and Fiduciaries.” Title 15 states that the powers of trustees are set forth in the uniform powers of trustees act, sections 68-104 through 68-113 (Idaho Code § 15-7-401). That act may be cited as the “Uniform Trustees’ Powers Act” (Idaho Code § 68-113).

Title 68 also covers court appointment of trustees and certifications of trust (Idaho Code §§ 68-101, 68-114), the Idaho Uniform Prudent Investor Act (§ 68-513), the Uniform Principal and Income Act (§ 68-10-101), charitable trusts (§ 68-1201), the Idaho Uniform Custodial Trust Act (§ 68-1321), the Idaho Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (§ 68-824), and court-approved payments to minors or incompetent persons (§ 68-1401). Other chapters govern how banks and transfer agents deal with fiduciaries, such as the Uniform Fiduciaries Law (§ 68-314) and the Uniform Act for the Simplification of Fiduciary Security Transfers (§ 68-911).

Chapter 2 of Title 68, on assignments for the benefit of creditors, is not part of this overview.

Key Terms Under Idaho Law

The Idaho Code defines several words that appear throughout this overview. Knowing them makes the rest of the overview easier to follow.

• Trust: includes any express trust, private or charitable, “wherever and however created,” plus additions to it. The definition leaves out many arrangements, such as resulting trusts, conservatorships, business trusts that issue certificates to beneficiaries, voting trusts, and arrangements where a person is only a nominee or escrowee for another (Idaho Code § 15-1-201(53)).
• Trustee: includes an original, additional, or successor trustee, whether or not appointed or confirmed by a court (§ 15-1-201(54)).
• Settlor: the person who creates the trust. The term includes “grantor,” “trustor,” and similar words (§ 15-1-201(46)).
• Beneficiary: for a trust, a person with any present or future interest, vested or contingent, including someone who received an interest by assignment or other transfer. For a charitable trust, it also includes anyone entitled to enforce the trust (§ 15-1-201(3)).
• Interested person: includes beneficiaries and others who have a property right in or claim against a trust estate that may be affected by the proceeding. Who counts can vary with the purpose of the proceeding (§ 15-1-201(25)).
• Fiduciary: includes a personal representative, guardian, conservator, and trustee (§ 15-1-201(18)).
• Court: in Idaho, the court that handles these matters is the district court (§ 15-1-201(8)).

Topics in This Overview

• Trust Registration and Court Jurisdiction: the trustee’s duty to register a trust, how registration works, and which Idaho court hears trust matters.
• Trustee Duties and Liabilities: the standard of care, the duty to keep beneficiaries informed, bonds, personal liability, time limits on claims, and removal of a trustee.
• Trustee Powers: powers under Idaho’s Uniform Trustees’ Powers Act, co-trustee and conflict rules, added Title 15 powers, and letters of trusteeship.
• Certification of Trust and Trustee Appointment: how Idaho courts appoint trustees, how trustees are paid if the trust is silent, and how a certification of trust proves a trustee’s authority.
• Prudent Investor Rule: Idaho’s Uniform Prudent Investor Act: how trustees must invest, diversify, delegate, and be judged, plus Idaho’s legal investment statutes.
• Principal and Income: how Idaho’s Uniform Principal and Income Act divides receipts and expenses between income and principal, the power to adjust, and notice of proposed action.
• Trust Protectors, Purpose Trusts, and Dry Trusts: trust protectors and trust advisors, spendthrift provisions, trusts for a purpose instead of a beneficiary, and unfunded trusts.
• Charitable Trusts and Private Foundations: the terms Idaho reads into private foundations and charitable trusts, how to opt out, and amending the trust with the attorney general’s consent.
• Custodial Trusts: how the Idaho Uniform Custodial Trust Act lets property be held for an adult, including incapacity rules, trustee duties, reports, and termination.
• Transfers to Minors: how gifts and inheritances pass to a custodian for a minor under the Idaho Uniform Transfers to Minors Act, and when the minor receives them.
• Court-Approved Payments to Minors and Special Needs Trusts: how Idaho courts direct settlement and judgment money for minors and incompetent persons, including restricted accounts and court-approved special needs trusts.
• Fiduciaries, Banks, and Securities Transfers: when Idaho banks, payees, and transfer agents are protected or liable in dealing with fiduciaries, plus nominee registration and common trust funds.
• Trust and Estate Disputes (TEDRA): binding written agreements without court, court proceedings, notice, and virtual representation.
• Pour-Over and Testamentary Trusts: how a will can add property to a trust (Idaho Code § 15-2-511) and related rules.

How Idaho Courts Fit In

The trustee of a trust whose principal place of administration is in Idaho must register the trust in the court at that place (Idaho Code § 15-7-101). The court of registration has exclusive jurisdiction over proceedings started by interested parties about the internal affairs of trusts (Idaho Code § 15-7-201(a)).

Registration does not put a trust under ongoing court supervision. Trust administration is to proceed “free of judicial intervention” unless an interested party asks the court to act or the court’s jurisdiction is otherwise exercised as provided by law (Idaho Code § 15-7-201(b)).

When a dispute arises, TEDRA offers two paths. Parties may resolve a matter through a written agreement signed by all parties, or a party may ask a court for a judicial proceeding (Idaho Code §§ 15-8-201, 15-8-302).

Key Idaho Trust Deadlines at a Glance

The table below lists time periods found in the Title 15 and Title 68 trust and fiduciary provisions. Each one has conditions and exceptions explained on the linked topic pages.

Time period	What it applies to	Idaho Code
30 days after acceptance of the trust	Trustee must inform current beneficiaries in writing of the court where the trust is registered and the trustee’s name and address	§ 15-7-303(a)
30 days after a written demand	A trustee who fails to register after a written demand by a settlor or beneficiary is subject to removal and denial of compensation or to surcharge, as the court may direct (with exceptions)	§ 15-7-104
At least 14 days before a hearing	Notice of a hearing on a petition by mail or personal delivery, unless the court orders otherwise for good cause	§ 15-1-401(a), (b)
6 months after receiving a final account	Claims for breach of trust are barred unless a proceeding is started, where the final account or statement fully disclosed the matter and showed the trust relationship ended	§ 15-7-307
3 years	Even without full disclosure, a trustee who issued a final account and told the beneficiary where records are available is protected after 3 years	§ 15-7-307
Within 90 days of the notice	Date of the statement of assets and liabilities included with a notice of proposed division or consolidation of trusts	§ 15-7-402(2)
30 days after the date of notice	Time for an interested person to object in writing to a trustee’s plan to terminate a trust worth less than $100,000	§ 15-7-402(4)
At least 14 days before a TEDRA hearing	Notice served on or mailed to all parties or their virtual representatives, unless a statute or the court provides a different period	§ 15-8-204(1)
30 days after all parties sign a TEDRA agreement	Period in which a special representative may notice a hearing for court review of the agreement	§ 15-8-304
6 months after appointment	A TEDRA special representative is discharged at the earlier of 6 months (unless the order provides otherwise) or execution of the written agreement	§ 15-8-305(4)
1 year after discharge	Latest time to bring an action against a special representative (earlier if a court approves the agreement)	§ 15-8-305(5)
At least 30 days from mailing	Objection period a trustee’s notice of proposed action under the Uniform Principal and Income Act must give beneficiaries	§ 68-10-105(d)(4)
Dated within 60 days before the transfer	Court certificate a corporation or transfer agent must obtain when a court-appointed fiduciary who is not the registered owner assigns a security	§ 68-904(a)
30 days after mailing	A corporation or transfer agent that mails notice to a person claiming an adverse interest must hold the security transfer, then make it unless restrained by a court order	§ 68-905(b)
Age 21 or age 18	A custodian under the Idaho Uniform Transfers to Minors Act transfers the property to the minor at 21 (gifts, exercises of a power of appointment, and transfers authorized by a will or trust) or 18 (other fiduciary and obligor transfers), or at the minor’s earlier death	§ 68-820
60 days	If a minor age 14 or older does not designate a successor custodian within this time after the custodian’s ineligibility, death, or incapacity, the minor’s conservator becomes successor custodian	§ 68-818(4)
90 days	If there is no effective provision for a successor and a custodial trust beneficiary is incapacitated or does not designate a successor custodial trustee within this time after the custodial trustee’s ineligibility, resignation, death, or incapacity, the beneficiary’s conservator becomes successor	§ 68-1313(3)
No later than 6 months after the end of each calendar year	A custodial trustee’s election to charge reasonable compensation for that year, unless the instrument, an agreement with the beneficiary, or a court order provides otherwise	§ 68-1314(2)
Once each year	A custodial trustee must provide a written statement of the administration of the custodial trust property (and also on request, on resignation or removal, and on termination)	§ 68-1315(1)
2 years after a final account; otherwise 3 or 5 years after the custodial trust ends	Claims against a custodial trustee are barred 2 years after receiving a fully disclosing final account, 3 years after termination without one, and 5 years after termination for fraud, misrepresentation, or concealment (extended for minors and incapacitated or deceased claimants)	§ 68-1316
At least 15 days before the hearing	Notice of the hearing and a copy of a petition under § 68-1403 (court-approved payments to minors or incompetent persons) must be mailed to the director of the Idaho department of health and welfare	§ 68-1403(5)

Who This Overview Is For

If you are serving as a trustee, the pages on duties and liabilities and trustee powers describe what Titles 15 and 68 require and allow. If you are a beneficiary, the same pages explain what information you may request and when you may ask the court for help (Idaho Code §§ 15-7-303, 15-7-308).

If you are planning an estate, the pages on pour-over and testamentary trusts and trust protectors describe options the code recognizes. The pages on custodial trusts, transfers to minors, and special needs trusts explain Title 68 arrangements for holding property for others (Idaho Code §§ 68-1302, 68-804, 68-1403). Questions about wills and probate are covered in the Idaho Wills & Probate overview.

How I Can Help

I help Idaho trustees understand and carry out their duties, and I help beneficiaries understand their rights under the trust and the Idaho Code. I can review trust documents, work through registration, accounting, and notice requirements, and help resolve disputes by agreement or in court. Request a consultation to discuss your situation.

This page provides general information about Idaho trust law, based on the Idaho Code, and is not legal advice. Court rules and case law also affect these matters. Every situation is different; consult an attorney about yours. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.