We are in the process of adding a Trust Department to our bank. I am not new to auditing, but i do not know much about Trust departments. Does anyone know of any seminars that would get me started on learning the basics of the Trust department?

I attended a trust audit from ICBA in April. It was very good. You might want to contact them. They might have a manual you can purchase.

Thank you for the suggestion, I did call them and asked if they would be offering that seminar in 2006, and of course so far it is not on their schedule.

The Cannon Financial Institute www.cannonfinancial.com has an excellent 3 year program for fiduciary auditing and you can be certified upon completing the courses. It is well worth the time and money considering the complexity and risks associated with a trust department.

I'd like to see ICBA offer it again too. I'll contact them too. I was unable to go last time. Maybe if enough people request it they will offer it again!

As the Compliance Officer devoted exclusively to Trust, I can highly recommend the Cannon program. But, it is a 3-yr commitment and may be more than what your particular circumstances may require.

There is an organization The Fiduciary & Investment Risk Management Association (FIRMA) that is made-up of professional involved in compliance and audit trust activities among other areas. You can find the FIRMA's website <a href="thefirma.org" target="_blank">here</a>. FIRMA holds an annual conference each year and also has several regional seminars each year, there is one coming up next week in NYC. Mary Beth has played an ongoing role with the organization in terms of its website and is also an occassional speaker (When she does speak - Can you imagine she ALWAYS does a plug for BOL - just imagine!)