Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

Good morning,

In California, after all trust debts are paid, do all named beneficiaries have to be paid funds at the same point in time?

For example, if one beneficiary is being difficult, do all beneficiaries have to wait until the combative beneficiary is satisfied with their portion before everyone can have the funds?

There is one party in our situation that says there's money missing from the estate, and their siblings are cheating them by hiding money. It's nonsense. This person estranged themselves voluntary from the decendant years before they passed. Although the trust states that funds, property, etc are to be split equally, this beneficiary claims there must be more funds somewhere. (yes, there is a legal record of mental instability, and combative behavior towards authority and family in the past. There are police reports, mental health records etc. regarding this person)

I'm a spouce that's stuck in the middle of this. The combative beneficiary seems to hold all the power over the situation, and i especially have no recourse. Im worried that my families assets After years of their past escapades, I don't understand how they became so empowered over the trustee.

Thanks, so much, for any feedback.

Best!


Asked on 8/05/23, 10:17 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

What can and cannot be done by a trustee is almost completely dependent on the exact terms of the trust and the exact facts and circumstances of the estate. However, in general, the trustee owes a fiduciary duty to all the beneficiaries and must jump through various hoops to fulfill that obligation. If one of the beneficiaries refuses to approve the trust distribution, the trustee may have to go to court to get the distribution approved. Hopefully the trust is set up to charge the objecting beneficiary's share in the event their dispute is unsuccessful.

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Answered on 8/06/23, 12:52 pm


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