Trustee vs. Executor

• Both a trustee and executor serve as fiduciaries, meaning they carry out the wishes of a decedent for the exclusive benefit of the deceased's beneficiaries. Neither a trustee nor executor can deviate from the instructions provided by a decedent regardless of their feelings or opinions, or those expressed by a deceased's beneficiaries, concerning the decisions made by the deceased. At the time of a person's death, an executor transfers the assets dedicated to the trust to the control of a decedent's chosen trustee. The remainder of the decedent's possessions remains in his estate and the deceased's appointed executor, executrix if female, assumes responsibility for those assets.