There may be nothing worse than having to fight for what is rightfully yours. As a trust beneficiary you are entitled to one thing above all else–trust distributions. Some trusts mandate distributions as “outright and free of trust” (meaning distributions now), some require assets to be held in trust until a certain age, and some […]
You may be surprised that a trustee can sell a home that is titled in the name of the trust without your consent. The trustee is the legal owner of the trust assets, they manage the trust assets, control them, and call all the shots. A trust beneficiary is the beneficial owner of the trust […]
Nothing is more troubling than a trustee who fails, or worse yet refuses, to account. The California Probate Code, along with most trust documents, require the trustee to account annually to the trust beneficiaries. The required trust accounting also must be in a set format outlined under Probate Code sections 1060 through 1063. The format […]
When it comes to trusts it can often seem like trustees are all powerful. But are they really? The answer may surprise you. So let’s discuss, how powerful is a trustee? On the one hand, trustees do have a tremendous amount of power over the trust and its assets. In legal terms, they are referred […]
Should a trustee tell you what is happening in the trust administration? Of course they should, but all too often trustees use information as a weapon and keep their beneficiaries in the dark. It is easy to spot a good trustee because there is a transparent, free flow of information. Bank statements, brokerage statements, closing […]
You are the lucky recipient of a generous inheritance, but that inheritance may come with a big catch. While many inheritances are given to the beneficiaries outright, meaning the money or other assets pass into the beneficiaries’ names to own and control, some trusts require inheritances to remain inside a trust for the lifetime of […]
Did you know that being disinherited may not be the only way you could lose your inheritance? Sure, you could just be excluded from the trust or the will and thereby be disinherited: that’s the first and most obvious way you could lose your inheritance. But there are more subtle ways in which you may […]
In most cases, a trustee cannot remove a beneficiary from a trust that the trustee manages. But the law is designed to address all potential scenarios. There may be circumstances in which a trustee may be able to make it happen. A trust creates a fiduciary relationship in which one party, known as a settlor, gives another […]
Follow Trust Terms The trustee has a duty to follow the Trust terms. In other words, do as they’re told. May sound obvious, but it’s remarkable how often trustees seem to get that one wrong. It is a basic trustee duty that can be found at California Probate Code section 16000. Too often individual trustees will […]
A viable financial elder abuse legal claim must contain the following elements: An ascertainable person (also known as a “bad actor”) stole an elderly person’s property or financial assets. The elderly person is at least 65 years old. The bad actor stole the assets with the intent to unfairly influence, coerce or defraud the elderly person […]
