Can a Florida Trustee Use Trust Money for Themselves? (§ 736.0802 — Duty of Loyalty)

Описание: If your Florida trustee is paying themselves excessive fees, hiring their own business to work for the trust, or keeping your inheritance with a financial advisor they have a personal relationship with — they may already be in breach of Florida's duty of loyalty statute. And under Florida law, you do not have to prove they caused financial harm to win. The breach occurs the moment their personal interests enter the picture.
What §736.0802 specifically requires:

Trustees must act solely in the interests of beneficiaries — not primarily, not mostly, solely
Any transaction where the trustee has a personal interest is presumed to be a conflict
Self-dealing includes excessive compensation, sales to family members, and hiring their own businesses
A trustee who keeps trust assets with a conflicted financial advisor may be breaching §736.0802 simultaneously

The four forms of self-dealing I see in actual cases:

Trustees paying themselves without disclosing the amount to beneficiaries
Trustees selling trust property to themselves or family members — even at fair market value
Trustees hiring their own businesses to perform trust services
Trustees maintaining trust assets with financial advisors they have undisclosed personal or financial relationships with

What courts can do:
Under §736.1001, Florida courts can compel an accounting, remove the trustee, and surcharge them personally for every dollar of profit they made — not just the damage caused. Under §736.1004, the court may award attorney's fees from the trustee's personal assets.
The deadline you cannot miss:
Under §736.1008, you may have as little as 6 months from the date you received an accounting to bring a claim. Even if you did not fully read it. The clock runs from receipt.
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📖 PRIMARY SOURCES — read the actual law:
Florida Statute §736.0802 (Official Legislature Text):
https://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/...
Florida Probate Rules (Procedural Framework):
https://floridarules.net/probate-rules/
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⏱️ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 — Can a trustee legally use trust money for themselves?
0:30 — Who Matt Weidner is and why this matters
1:00 — What §736.0802 actually says — the word "solely"
2:00 — The four specific forms of self-dealing
3:30 — The $400,000 loan scenario — what I see in real cases
4:30 — Your legal remedies under §§736.1001 and 736.1004
5:30 — The 6-month deadline under §736.1008
6:00 — What to do right now
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⚖️ Matt Weidner is a Florida probate and trust litigation attorney in St. Petersburg, Florida. He represents beneficiaries, spouses, and children in active disputes over estates, trusts, and homestead property. He goes to court.
🌐 mattweidnerlaw.com
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⚠️ This video is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is formed by viewing this content. Florida law is complex and fact-specific. Consult a licensed Florida attorney regarding your specific situation.