Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
Some 30+ years ago, an irrevocable trust was set up for my benefit, with my grandfather as the trustee. When he died, my father became trustee. My father recently passed, so I petitioned the probate court to allow me to become trustee, which was granted. Inside the trust is only a single piece of property, a house, in which I reside (purchased @ 10 years ago with funds within the trust). Now that I am trustee of my own irrevocable trust, does the trust still maintain the same integrity (power of protection), as it did when my grandfather/father was trustee?
2 Answers from Attorneys
It depends on what the trust provisions say. It is hard to comment on the impact of a trust instrument without reviewing the document.
The trustee is a fiduciary. Being trustee is a job. It doesn't really matter who the trustee is. What matters are the terms of the trust. If the trust was designed as a spendthrift trust, however, if you are the trustee and the beneficiary, then the assets of the trust could be subject to your creditor claims. Essentially the legal ownership (owned by the trustee) and the beneficial ownership (owned by the beneficiary) merges when the trustee and the beneficiary are the same person. But it's best for you to sit down with an attorney to answer this question, perhaps the attorney who assisted you in petitioning the court to get you appointed as trustee.
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