Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

First off, I want to say thanks to any attorneys who are willing to take time to answer these questions. I would also like to acknowledge how much work it took for you to earn a law degree. As a person who earned a B.A. in Criminal Justice (emphasis on law, not law enforcement), I wasn't sure which area of law my question belonged in. I know just enough to know I didn't know enough to decide.

I'm not sure how to ask my question without providing a whole lot of information, most of it probably isn't needed. I hope that someone is patient enough to wade through all this, hear what I'm looking for & if it's possible, to offer some suggestions.

I am included in my grandmother's will. My grandmother died 19 months ago. Her Trust left everything to my uncle, my aunt & myself , to be split equally. My uncle is the executor. My uncle had Power of Attorney over my grandmother for the last few years of her life. At least one million dollars "disappeared" & could not have been spent for my grandmother. During that time my uncle, who had struggled with money difficulties for many years suddenly was able to make a number of very expensive additions to his home, purchased new luxury cars & at least one new "classic" car (up to that point he drove an older economy car). He was suddenly able to take trips.

Since my grandmother's death, there has been no contact with my uncle. He does not return phone calls. My aunt was able to get a copy of the trust after an attorney sent a certified letter to my uncle. Apparently my uncle hired an attorney upon receiving the certified letter. The attorney sent my aunt a copy of the Trust. When this attorney was contacted, he said he was waiting on my uncle for an accounting. That was months ago.

I understand it would probably take years & at a cost neither my aunt nor I can afford to have this resolved. There was one bit of information my uncle's attorney shared that is what my question pertains to. My uncle's attorney didn't give specific details but said that there was some type of policy my grandmother obtained because of her teaching career & I was the only person named as the benefactor of it. He indicated that my uncle had expressed interest in that policy but had been informed he could not do anything because I was named on it. No other information was given & since that point, that attorney has not responded to any of our messages & phone calls. I understand that he is not required to, & that it was kind of him to volunteer any information.

Is there a way for me to find out the specifics on this policy without my uncle's help? Is it possible to even find what policy this is by researching teaching policies & contacting possible companies to ask if my grandmother had a policy with them? I was a teacher myself, so it might be possible to get information from the CTA about policies available to teachers at the time when my grandmother taught. She retired from teaching in the early 1970's.

What steps can I take to force my uncle to provide me with an accounting if I myself can not afford to hire an attorney. My grandmother died in Placerville, CA, & I am physically unable to travel to that area to check court records. I haven't found any information about this matter being filed in court through the records available on-line.

Are there no legal requirements my uncle has as the executor? What does one do when an executor has done nothing to inform the others named in a Trust & has not filed anything in court. Can my uncle literally do nothing & there is no recourse available that I can do myself. I really don't expect to ever receive any money, but it would be nice to force my uncle to try to account for what he did to provide care for my grandmother & take care of her financial responsibilities. I have no doubt that my uncle misappropriated my grandmother's money for his own benefit & understand that proving that is beyond what I have the ability to do. I don't expect him to ever be held accountable for that, but it would be nice to at least force him to account for what happened to her money. I do know he won't be able to provide a legitimate accounting for a large amount of her money, money that he had control over & was only allowed to use for her benefit- He has not been held accountable. I did contact Elder Abuse not long after my uncle had Power of Attorney & only after my grandmother repeatedly asked for my help in getting information from my uncle (her only living child). Elder Abuse would not investigate after my grandmother told them everything was fine. She continued to urge me & my aunt to talk to my uncle. At that time I had the finances to hire an attorney & would have done it except I knew that the legal process would expose my uncle in a way that would have broke my grandmother's heart. I loved my grandmother too much to allow that to happen. Had my uncle provided reasonable luxuries for my grandmother while she was alive, I would not be questioning what happened to her money now that she's dead. I wanted her to live the last years of her life as comfortably as possible & considering she worked hard all of her life, her money should have been spent on her. Things she certainly could afford like phone service in her room at the nursing home. Providing her with the items she liked, from specific cologne to the type of clothing she preferred. He provided nothing but the absolute minimum he had to- I am furious at him for not treating his mother decently in the last years of her life. My grandmother was generous ( generous to a fault) with my uncle & me- We were her favorites & she made no secret of that. She would have done anything for us.

If it is possible, my only real interest is to force my uncle to explain what he spent her money on while she was alive. I know it wasn't on her care. My uncle is well aware that I was familiar with my grandmother's finances. He believes that my only interest is getting my share of the inheritance & that I lack the finances to pursue that. He is mistaken about my intent. I don't care if I ever see a penny of the inheritance. If it is within my power, I would like to stop him from getting any more of my grandmother's money than he already has. I believe that he will try to cash in the insurance policy I'm named as the benefactor of, even if he has to resort to fraud to get it. I would like my uncle to give a written accounting because he will be forced to lie. It will be apparent to all of us who loved my grandmother & witnessed that he spent nothing beyond what he had to- absolutely nothing extra.

My uncle will have to lie to cover what he did, & I know there will be no real legal consequences- just forcing him to have to come up with lies & to put it in black & white for all to see, will be more than enough to satisfy me. I know how much he will HATE that he has to account for his actions. My uncle has lived a privileged life & always lived well beyond his means. My grandmother often "helped" him out of his financial difficulties. My uncle was been involved in some dishonest activities but did not suffer any real legal consequences. He has got away with a lot. He behaves like he is untouchable & answers to no one. The worst he has faced was avoiding a civil suit by agreeing to surrender his medical license. It's such a coincidence that he was agreeable to that, despite that meaning he was losing his job & ability to earn money, the coincidence is that occurred when he was able to take control over my grandmother's money. It's amazing that his lifestyle had a dramatic change for the better although his own financial situation suffered a huge loss.

I just want him to explain in writing, how he managed to spend every penny of his mother's money on her care. My grandmother loved my uncle & I know how hurt she was by his lack of contact. He only came to her when he asked for money. But she was happy to be in a position to be able to do that because she wanted to see her son. Right or wrong, if she was happy with that, I was happy for her. I would have just let sleeping dogs lie if he had just treated his mother with some kindness during those last years.He could have all her money with no questions from me if he just hadn't been so greedy that he refused to spend a tiny part of the total amount of my grandmother's money on her.

Please forgive me for the long rant & excess of details.I'm not looking for free legal advice on how to file a civil suit to pursue "my inheritance". I am hoping someone will hear me & understand I have no intentions to even try to obtain any monies I should have received. All I would really like is to know what steps are available that I can do myself that would suggest to my uncle that he is going to face a civil suit unless he provides an accounting. Point me in the direction where I can find self -help information on-line, information that does not require a degree in law to understand. I have tried to research the California codes. Given enough time, say a couple of years, I might be able to educate myself. Might be able to, but I'm aware that it would be too late to realistically expect to receive an accounting.

Kudos to those of you who earned your law degree. Your hard work doesn't get the appreciation it deserves.

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