Alabama § 19-3B-708 - Compensation of Trustee.

§ 19-3B-708. Compensation of Trustee.

(a) If the terms of a trust do not specify the trustee’s compensation, then a trustee is entitled to compensation that is reasonable under the circumstances.

(b) If the terms of a trust specify the trustee’s compensation, the trustee has entered into a written fee agreement with the settlor, or the trustee has entered into a written fee agreement with the adult current permissible distributees of income and, in the event the trustee’s compensation is allocated to principal, the adult presumptive remainder beneficiaries of the trust, then the trustee is entitled to be compensated as specified in the applicable agreement, but the court may allow more or less compensation if:

(1) the duties of the trustee are substantially different from those contemplated when the trust was created or when the applicable agreement was executed; or

(2) the compensation specified by the terms of the trust or the applicable agreement would be unreasonably low or high.

(c) A trustee who invests in any common trust fund or other collective investment fund maintained by any regulated financial institution, or securities of, or other interests in any open-end or closed-end management type investment company or investment trust registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as from time to time amended, to which the trustee, or its affiliate, provides services such as investment advisor, sponsor, distributor, custodian, transfer agent, registrar, broker, or otherwise, may be compensated by the investment company or investment trust for providing those services out of fees charged to the investment company or the investment trust or to the trust, if the trustee at least annually notifies the persons entitled under Section 19-3B-813(a) to receive a copy of the trustee’s annual report, prospectus, or other report, of the rate and method by which the compensation was determined.

(d) Compensation paid to a business entity affiliated with the trustee shall be presumed to be reasonable if the compensation is consistent with the published fee schedule maintained by the affiliated business entity in the ordinary course of business.