Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

Are you a beneficiary of an estate plan set up by your father and step-mother? Sometimes a Trustee can hold property in his or her name and it is still trust property, so there may be an innocent explanation. If your step-mother is not competent, then her estate plan may be irrevocable and you may be entitled to information. Otherwise you may only be entitled to notice upon her death. If you have a copy of the Estate plan, you should meet with an attorney and go over your options.

First, the power of attorney died with the maker, and therefore whoever held the power can be sued for fraud and or mismanagement of assets of the trust.. Suggest you obtain a probate/trust litigation attorney to compel an accounting, and recover the properties that your stepbrother cpa, who is charged with knowing and was knowledgeable about what he was signing; sounds like stepbrother unjustly enriched himself maybe at your expense. Waiting three years does not help you in this matter, but may have a negative effect on the solution to this problem.

You need to speak to an attorney -- this is a problem that cannot be resolved in a public forum.

One of the things you will need to explore with counsel is whether your mother has a claim for financial elder abuse. There may be other claims, but that is one of the first that comes to mind.

The impact of the power of attorney depends on exactly what the power of attorney says. It is not possible to say anything about its effect without reading it.

Do not wait on this one -- time is not your friend here. I suggest you start looking for attorneys today, with the goal of having an appointment and initial consultation next week. You want someone experienced in trust, estate, and financial elder abuse matters. There are people here on LawGuru that have that experience. You may also want to contact your local county bar to see if they have a panel of qualified attorneys.