Removal of a trustee; MCL 700.7706(2); A breach of trust; MCL 700.7901(1); Removal pursuant to MCL 700.7706(2)(c)

The court did not find the probate court’s removal of appellant-Hardaway as trustee outside the range of reasonable and principled outcomes. Thus, it affirmed the probate court’s order removing her as trustee and appointing appellee-Fraser as special fiduciary. Hardaway argued that “there was no statutory reason to remove her as trustee, no evidence supporting her removal, and her removal violated the terms of the trust.” The court disagreed. “The probate court found that the parties’ behavior was ‘outrageous’ and the home was sellable. [Its] findings were supported by the record.” Although the probate “court did not expressly identify any of the statutory grounds for removal identified in MCL 700.7706(2), examining the record, it is apparent that the removal was pursuant to MCL 700.7706(2)(c). Under that subsection, the court may remove a trustee if, ‘because of . . . persistent failure of the trustee to administer the trust effectively, the court determines that removal of the trustee best serves the purposes of the trust.’” There was no dispute “that the home is the primary asset in the Trust.” It was also “undisputed that Hardaway locked” appellee-King (her sibling) “out of the home one day after” the settlor of the Trust (Earnest) passed, and King “locked Hardaway out of the home several months later. The settlement agreement was entered on [12/15/23]. Relevantly, it stated that King would provide Hardaway with a key to the home, Hardaway would prepare the home for sale, Hardaway would provide a timeline for listing the home for sale, and King would be paid $80,000 from the proceeds of the sale.” It was “undisputed that the home was not listed for sale until [5/28/24]. Over five months had elapsed between the entry of the settlement agreement and the listing of the home, which was nearly one year after Earnest’s death. Hardaway had a duty to expeditiously administer the trust, but persistently failed to do so.”