The Trusts Act 2025 (Qld) (Trusts Act) started on 28 April 2026. Sections 135 and 136 of the Trusts Act have replaced s 67 of the repealed Trusts Act 1973 (Qld) (Repealed Act) regarding giving a notice of intention to distribute trust (or estate) property.
Therefore, from 28 April 2026, notices of intention to distribute must be given in accordance with s 135 of the Trusts Act.
While s 135 is similar to repealed s 67, there are some important differences, including:
- Increased notice period – The notice must give people who have any claim to, or against, the trust property at least two months after the day the notice is published to send particulars of their claim to the trustee. This notice period has been increased from six weeks under s 67 of the Repealed Act. It should be noted that “month” in this context is a “calendar month”.1
- Requirement for notice to give a stated day – The notice must require claimants to send particulars of their claim to the trustee by a stated day that is at least two months after the date the notice is published. It is not clear whether the legislature’s intention was to require a specific date be included in the notice. However, to avoid any disputes about the closing day for claims, we suggest notices include a specific date in the month that is at least two months after the date the notice is published.
For example, if the notice will be published on 3 July 2026, two [calendar] months from that date is 3 August 2026, but 3 August 2026 would not be “at least 2 months” after the date the notice is published,2 so the date to be specified should be no earlier than 4 August 2026 (and if 4 August happens to be a non-business day, then out of caution, move the date to the next available business day).3
- Updated methods of publication – Notices under s 135 that are not included in a notice of intention to apply for grant can now be published on an approved website. The public notices section of the Queensland Reports website has been approved for this purpose.
There is no requirement for the notice to be given in an approved form, so practitioners may develop their own template notice. To ensure the notice complies with s 135, QLS suggests the below wording for the notice:
Pursuant to section 135 of the Trusts Act 2025 (Qld), the applicant gives notice that any person having any claim to, or against, the assets of the estate of the above deceased (trust property), whether as a creditor, beneficiary or otherwise, must send particulars of that claim to the applicant’s solicitor named below by [##insert day, month, year, e.g., 4 August 2026##] (being the day which is at least two months after the date of publication of this notice) after which date the applicant may in accordance with section 136 of the Trusts Act 2025 (Qld) distribute the trust property among the persons entitled having regard only to the claims of which the applicant has notice at the time of the distribution.
If notice was given on or after 28 April 2026 under s 67 of the Repealed Act instead of under s 135 of the Trusts Act, the trustee protections under s 136 of the Trusts Act may not apply.
Practitioners who choose to readvertise to correct a notice published after 28 April 2026 that did not comply with s 135 of the Trusts Act should not pass the costs of readvertising to their client without the client’s specific agreement.
Footnotes
1 Acts Interpretation Act 1954 (Qld) Sch 1.
2 Ibid s38.
3 Ibid.
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