A certificate of trust (also called an “affidavit of trust” or “memorandum of trust”) is a legal document that proves several important things:
- That your trust really exists
- Who created it
- Who is in charge of it (the trustee)
- What you have the power to do with it or on behalf of it
- Anything else that is important for other people and institutions to understand about the trust or the trustee to accomplish what you want to do with it
This document is generally used as a condensed version of the trust agreement to show to third parties (like your bank or title company) to certify that you have the legal authority to act on behalf of the trust.
It is important to have this document prepared by a professional—not some template off the Internet—because it tells the story of the trust without sharing private information like specific property details or the personal details of your beneficiaries.