Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

If you want all the money to go to one person or equally to several, you arrange with your banker for a pay on death instruction for the account. If you want it distributed in unequal shares, or if you want one person to get the interest for some period of time and then the money to go to someone else, then you need to put it in a trust.

I don't know who told you or why you believe having the bank account in the trust is a problem? There are a lot more problems leaving the account outside of the trust. If the account does not have a pay on death designation, then it could be subject to Probate. If your elderly mother is still the sole trustee, then sometimes there can be some delay in having the successor trustee take over due to your mother's inability to manage the trust. There are many solutions. For example, she can appoint a co-trustee or provide a limited power of attorney to have some extra help while she is still alive and in charge of her trust. She should meet with an attorney to go over the specifics of her situation and to discuss various options for her trust.