Can a Trustee Refuse to Give You Trust Information?

A trustee can refuse to give you trust information, but only after genuinely weighing the factors set out in section 53 of the Trusts Act 2019 and only where withholding is reasonable in the circumstances.

The Act starts from the opposite position, presuming that basic trust information goes to every beneficiary and that requested trust information is handed over within a reasonable time.

Refusal is the exception, not the default, and a trustee who gets that balance wrong can end up in court and personally out of pocket.

Can a Trustee Legally Refuse to Give You Trust Information in New Zealand?

Yes, a trustee can lawfully refuse, but only after following the process in sections 51 to 55 of the Trusts Act 2019, and only where the refusal is reasonable once the section 53 factors have been considered.

The Act builds in two presumptions that favour you as a beneficiary.

Under section 51, a trustee is presumed to have to make basic trust information available to every beneficiary or that beneficiary’s representative.

Under section 52, a trustee is presumed to have to give you trust information you’ve asked for, within a reasonable period of time.

A presumption isn’t an absolute right, though.

Both sections say the same thing about how a trustee can step away from the presumption: the trustee must first consider the section 53 factors, and if the trustee reasonably considers after weighing those factors that the information shouldn’t be given, the presumption doesn’t apply and the trustee may withhold or refuse.

The table below compares the two categories of information the Act creates and what each one means for you.

The key takeaway is that the two categories work differently.

Basic trust information is something a trustee has to think about giving you without you lifting a finger, while the wider body of trust information sits behind a request that you have to make.

A refusal in either case has to survive the section 53 weighing exercise, and if you take the decision to court under section 127, the trustee will have to establish that the decision was reasonably open to it once you’ve shown there’s a genuine and substantial dispute about it.

What Basic Trust Information Must a Trustee Give Every Beneficiary?

Section 51(3) sets out four items of basic trust information that a trustee is presumed to have to make available to every beneficiary:

• the fact that you are a beneficiary of the trust
• the name and contact details of the trustee
• the occurrence of, and details about, each appointment, removal and retirement of a trustee as it happens
• your right to request a copy of the terms of the trust or other trust information

That list is deliberately short.

It doesn’t include accounts, minutes, distribution records or the trust deed itself, because those sit in the wider “trust information” category that you have to request under section 52.

What section 51 does is make sure you know the trust exists, know who is running it, and know that you’re allowed to ask for more.

Section 51 also carries an ongoing obligation rather than a one-off one.

A trustee is required to consider at reasonable intervals whether they should be making the basic trust information available.

So a trustee who decided in 2021 that a young beneficiary shouldn’t be told about the trust can’t rely on that decision indefinitely, because circumstances change and the trustee has to revisit the question.

Where a beneficiary lacks capacity, the information goes to that person’s representative instead.

Section 49 defines a representative as the parent, guardian, attorney or property manager of a beneficiary who lacks capacity.

In practice, this is how the information reaches children who are named as beneficiaries of a family trust.

What Counts as Trust Information You Can Request?

Trust information means information about the terms of the trust, the administration of the trust, or the trust property that it’s reasonably necessary for you to have to enable the trust to be enforced.

That definition, in section 49, can cover the trust deed and any variations, financial statements and accounts, records of distributions, trustee resolutions and minutes, and details of what the trust owns and owes.

None of those documents is automatically disclosable simply because it exists.

The test is whether you reasonably need the information to hold the trustees to account, not whether you’re curious about it, and the assessment is made document by document.

There’s one carve-out written into the definition itself.

Trust information does not include the reasons for trustees’ decisions.

This means a trustee can hand you a resolution recording that a distribution was made to your sibling, while declining to explain why the trustees decided that was the right call.

The distinction matters more than most beneficiaries expect, because it’s often the “why” that people actually want.

Section 52 requires the trustee to give you the information within a reasonable period of time.

The Act doesn’t set a number of days, and what’s reasonable will depend on how much material is involved and how complicated it is to pull together.

A narrow request, such as a copy of the trust deed, can reasonably be dealt with far more quickly than a request for a decade of financial statements.

Ignoring a request altogether isn’t one of the options the Act gives a trustee, because section 52 presumes the information will be given unless the trustee actually goes through the section 53 assessment and decides to refuse.

What Factors Can a Trustee Consider When Withholding Trust Information?

Section 53 lists thirteen factors that a trustee must consider before deciding whether the presumption in section 51 or section 52 applies.

The factors are:

• the nature of the interests held by you and the other beneficiaries, including how likely you are to receive trust property in future
• whether the information is subject to personal or commercial confidentiality
• the settlor’s expectations and intentions at the time the trust was created, if known
• your age and circumstances
• the age and circumstances of the other beneficiaries
• the effect on you of giving the information
• the effect on the trustees, the other beneficiaries and third parties of giving the information
• for a family trust, the effect on relationships within the family and between trustees and beneficiaries
• where there are many or unascertainable beneficiaries, the practicality of giving information to all of them
• the practicality of imposing restrictions or safeguards on how the information is used
• the practicality of giving some or all of the information in redacted form
• the nature and context of the request, where a beneficiary has made one
• any other factor the trustee reasonably considers relevant

A single factor can be strong enough to justify withholding, but the trustee still has to work through the list rather than reach for the one point that supports saying no.

The obligation is to consider the factors and then reach a conclusion that’s reasonable in the circumstances, which is why a refusal with no sign that any weighing took place is difficult to defend if it’s later challenged.

Why Does the Reason for Your Request Matter?

The nature and context of your request is an express factor under section 53, so how and why you ask will influence the outcome.

A focused request that explains what you’re trying to check, such as whether a particular property was sold at market value, is far harder to refuse than a broad demand for every document the trust has ever generated.

Trustees are entitled to weigh whether the request looks like genuine monitoring of the trust or something else, such as an attempt to gather material for an unrelated dispute.

Framing your request around the enforcement of the trust, which is the stated purpose of these sections, puts you on the strongest footing.

Can a Trustee Withhold Information to Protect Family Relationships?

Yes, in the case of a family trust the effect of disclosure on relationships within the family is a factor the trustee must weigh.

This surprises a lot of beneficiaries, who assume family dynamics are irrelevant to a legal entitlement.

The factor doesn’t give trustees a free pass, though, because it sits alongside twelve others and has to be balanced against the purpose of the disclosure rules, which is to let beneficiaries enforce the trust.

A wish to avoid an awkward conversation will carry far less weight than evidence of genuine harm to family relationships.

Can a Trustee Give You a Redacted Copy Instead?

Yes, and section 53 specifically directs trustees to consider whether some or all of the information could be given in redacted form.

The Act also asks trustees to consider whether restrictions or safeguards could solve the problem instead of a flat refusal, such as an undertaking about how the information will be used or limiting who may inspect the documents.

These two factors are among the most useful for beneficiaries, because they turn an all-or-nothing question into a negotiation.

If a trustee refuses on confidentiality grounds, asking for a redacted version or offering a confidentiality undertaking often unlocks material that would otherwise be withheld.

What Happens When a Trustee Withholds Trust Information From Everyone?

Section 54 forces the trustee into court, but only in the narrow situation where no beneficiary of the trust has any trust information at all.

That situation can arise in three ways: the trustee can’t identify any beneficiary to give information to, the trustee decides under section 51 to withhold all of the basic trust information from all beneficiaries, or the trustee refuses a request for trust information under section 52 and no one else has anything either.

Where that happens, the trustee must apply to the court for directions on whether the decision was reasonable in the circumstances, and on what alternative means exist to keep the trust enforceable and the trustee accountable.

This is the most commonly misunderstood part of the disclosure regime.

Being refused personally does not automatically send your trustee to court, because the trigger is a complete information blackout across the whole trust, not a single refused request.

If your sibling has the accounts and you don’t, section 54 won’t be engaged, and your remedy lies elsewhere.

There’s also a limited escape hatch.

The trustee doesn’t have to apply to the court if the blackout lasts less than 12 months and, at the end of that period, the trustee gives at least one beneficiary the basic trust information.

Both parts of that carve-out have to be met, so a trustee can’t sit on a total blackout indefinitely and hope no one notices.

When the court does give directions, it must take into account two principles: that trust information may be withheld from all beneficiaries only in exceptional circumstances, and that any alternative way of enforcing the trust in the meantime must fit the trust’s objectives and not damage its administration.

The phrase “exceptional circumstances” sets a high bar, and it signals how seriously Parliament treated total secrecy.

Can a Trustee Make You Pay for Trust Information?

Yes, section 55 allows a trustee to require you to pay the reasonable cost of giving you trust information requested under section 52 or provided under the terms of the trust.

The trustee can also require you to pay some or all of that cost before handing anything over.

This is one of the least discussed parts of the disclosure rules, and it catches people out.

An invoice is not a refusal.

If a trustee tells you that copying, collating and reviewing ten years of records will cost a certain amount and asks for payment first, that’s a lawful response rather than an obstruction.

The limit is that the cost must be reasonable.

A charge that looks designed to price you out of asking, rather than to recover genuine administration expenses, is open to challenge.

It’s also worth noting that the charging right in section 55 attaches to information given under section 52 or under the terms of the trust.

It doesn’t on its face extend to the basic trust information a trustee is presumed to make available under section 51, so a trustee shouldn’t be billing you simply for telling you that you’re a beneficiary.

What Have the Courts Said About Trustees Refusing to Disclose?

New Zealand’s senior courts have made clear that beneficiaries have no automatic right to trust documents, but also that a trustee who refuses without good reason can face real consequences.

Erceg v Erceg

In Erceg v Erceg [2017] NZSC 28, delivered on 8 March 2017, the Supreme Court held that disclosure of trust documents is not a proprietary right of beneficiaries but an aspect of the court’s supervisory jurisdiction over trusts.

The Court set out ten factors it weighs when deciding whether to order disclosure, including the nature of the documents sought, the context and objective of the request, the strength of the beneficiary’s interest, confidentiality, practical difficulty, the impact on trustees and other beneficiaries, and whether redaction or safeguards could protect what needs protecting.

Many of those considerations are also reflected in section 53, so the case remains a useful guide to how the statutory factors are applied.

The appeal itself was dismissed and no disclosure was ordered, which is a useful reminder that a beneficiary asking the court for help doesn’t always win.

Lambie Trustee Ltd v Addleman

In Lambie Trustee Ltd v Addleman [2021] NZSC 54, delivered on 1 June 2021, the Supreme Court held that a trustee generally can’t claim legal professional privilege against a beneficiary over advice obtained for the administration of the trust and paid for out of trust funds.

The reasoning is that the advice was obtained for running the trust rather than for the trustee’s own personal benefit, so the trustee and the beneficiary share a joint interest in it.

The Court did draw a line: once litigation between the trustee and the beneficiary is on foot, the joint interest ends, and the trustee can claim privilege over advice obtained to defend that litigation.

The Court was careful to note that the line isn’t crossed simply because a dispute is brewing, so advice taken while a disagreement is merely possible may still have to be disclosed.

For a beneficiary chasing information, this decision is significant, because it means legal advice about how the trust has been run is often disclosable rather than automatically off limits.

The Addleman Costs Decision

The sequel to that case, Lambie Trustee Ltd v Addleman [2023] NZSC 7, delivered on 17 February 2023, dealt with who pays for the fight.

The Supreme Court awarded the beneficiary her actual costs of the appeal to that Court, along with the costs already awarded in the Court of Appeal and scale costs in the High Court, all payable out of the trust.

It then stripped the trustee company of its right to be indemnified out of trust funds for any of it, requiring the company to reimburse the trust from its own resources.

The Court’s reasoning was that the trustee had aligned itself entirely with one beneficiary’s interests while owing duties to another.

The practical message for trustees is that resisting disclosure can end with the trustee bearing the cost personally rather than the trust, though that outcome turned on how this trustee behaved rather than on the refusal alone.

Which Trusts Are Not Covered by These Rules?

Sections 51 to 55 don’t apply to charitable trusts, or to other trusts for a permitted purpose that have no beneficiaries.

That exclusion exists because the disclosure rules are built around the idea of a beneficiary enforcing the trust, and a purpose trust without beneficiaries has no one in that role.

Charitable trusts are held to account in other ways, and registered charities have annual reporting obligations administered by Charities Services, although registration itself is voluntary.

For ordinary family and private trusts, though, these rules apply in full.

Trusts remain a mainstream part of New Zealand life rather than a niche arrangement.

Inland Revenue reported that 233,000 trusts and estates filed IR6 returns in the 2024 income tax year, a decrease of 3.2 percent on 2023.

That figure isn’t a count of New Zealand trusts, because it combines trusts with estates and leaves out any trust that isn’t required to file an IR6 return.

What Should You Do if a Trustee Refuses Your Request?

Start by making a clear written request under section 52 that identifies the specific documents or information you want and explains how it relates to the running of the trust.

A written request creates a record, starts the clock on the trustee’s obligation to respond within a reasonable period, and makes it much harder for a trustee to claim the request was never made.

Keep the scope tight, because the nature and context of a request is a factor the trustee is entitled to weigh.

If the answer is no, ask the trustee to confirm that they considered the section 53 factors and to identify the basis on which they concluded the presumption didn’t apply.

The Act doesn’t expressly require a trustee to hand you written reasons for a refusal, so this is a practical step rather than something you can demand as of right.

It’s still worth taking, because a trustee who can’t later show that any weighing exercise took place will find the decision much harder to defend.

At this stage, it’s often worth offering the middle ground the Act itself points to, such as a redacted version of the documents or a confidentiality undertaking about how you’ll use them.

Where that fails, the next step is an application to the High Court.

The court has a supervisory jurisdiction over trusts and can order disclosure, review a trustee’s decision under section 127, and in the right circumstances make costs orders against a trustee personally.

Section 127 works in two stages, so you first have to put up evidence raising a genuine and substantial dispute about whether the decision was reasonable, and only then does the trustee have to establish that the decision was reasonably open to it.

Litigation should be the last option rather than the first, because it’s expensive and slow, but the Addleman costs decision shows the courts are willing to make a trustee bear the financial consequences of how it has behaved.

Getting legal advice before you apply will help you work out whether your request falls within the definition of trust information and whether the trustee’s stated grounds for refusal stand up.

Need Help Getting Trust Information From a Trustee?

A trustee can refuse to give you trust information, but only after properly weighing the section 53 factors and reaching a reasonable decision, and a refusal that skips that process is open to challenge.

Knowing which category your request falls into, what a trustee is allowed to charge you, and when section 54 forces a trustee into court puts you in a much stronger position.

As trust dispute lawyers in New Zealand, Evolution Lawyers can help you request trust information, assess whether a trustee’s refusal was reasonable, and take the matter further if it needs to go to court.

Contact our team today to discuss your rights to trust information as a beneficiary.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a trustee have to tell me I’m a beneficiary if I’ve never asked?

Yes. Section 51 of the Trusts Act 2019 presumes a trustee must make basic trust information available to every beneficiary, and the fact you are a beneficiary is one of the four items. The trustee must weigh the section 53 factors first and can withhold in some cases, but the starting point is that you should be told.

Am I entitled to the trust deed if I’m only a discretionary beneficiary?

You can request a copy of the terms of the trust, and section 52 presumes the trustee must provide it within a reasonable period. Being a discretionary beneficiary doesn’t disqualify you, though section 53 lets the trustee weigh how likely you are to receive trust property. A remote interest makes refusal easier to justify.

How long does a trustee have to give me trust information?

The Trusts Act 2019 requires a trustee to give requested trust information within a reasonable period of time, and sets no fixed number of days. What’s reasonable depends on the volume and complexity of the material, so a request for the trust deed can be dealt with much faster than one covering years of financial records.

Can a trustee charge me for copies of trust documents?

Yes. Section 55 of the Trusts Act 2019 lets a trustee require a beneficiary to pay the reasonable cost of giving trust information requested under section 52, and payment can be demanded before the information is provided. The cost must be reasonable and reflect the work involved. A charge designed to deter you can be challenged.

Can a trustee refuse to tell me why they made a decision?

Yes. The definition of trust information in section 49 of the Trusts Act 2019 excludes the reasons for trustees’ decisions. A trustee can record that a distribution was made without explaining the thinking behind it. You can still request the underlying documents and accounts, though whether each one must be produced is decided under sections 52 and 53.

When does a trustee have to apply to the court over withheld information?

Under section 54 of the Trusts Act 2019, a trustee must apply to the court for directions where no beneficiary of the trust has any trust information at all. The trustee is excused if the blackout lasts less than 12 months and at least one beneficiary is then given the basic trust information. Being personally refused doesn’t trigger this obligation.