Trustor

The term trustor denotes a person (or other entity) who places their assets in a trust. The term trustor is synonymous with the terms settlor, trustmaker and grantor.

A trust is an agreement between two parties – a trustor and a trustee. In this agreement, the trustor transfers the ownership of assets such as money or property to a trustee, in exchange for certain benefits provided by the trustee to the trustor or to third-party beneficiaries.

A declaration of trust or trust deed is a document created by the trustee which serves as the basis for the agreement between themselves and the trustee. In the declaration of trust, the trustor lays out the terms and conditions attached to the entrusting of their assets to the trustee, including the benefits which they expect to receive from the trustee and the conditions attached to these benefits.

Trusts are widely used in wealth management in countries ruled by Common Law. They have recently been defined as an entity under Swiss law, albeit with some differences to trusts as they are defined by Common Law and United States law.