Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
Living trust vs.spoken wishes
My mother died very suddenly...from the time she was diagnosed with cancer to the time she died was four and a half weeks.On the same date as my father, brother, and I trusted her to make the decision, on her own, to not resuscitate; she verbally let us know how she wanted the inheritance split when she died. She also made these wishes known to her sister, her mother, and my girlfriend.
My father is not honoring her wishes and, I believe, slowly spending our share. I do have a hand written note of ''things to do'' from her and on that paper, #2 thing to do says ''get living will done''. Unfortunately she did not have enough time.
My mother and father had a Living Trust I believe and he is using that as an excuse not to pay. If my mother would have had more time on the face of the earth she would have had a will made up to her wishes.
My question is...are my brother and I entitled to the share of the inheritance that she wanted us to have?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Living trust vs.spoken wishes
1. A living will has more to do with medical care than inheritance.
2. The spoken word will never be upheld in a probate court.
3. You should get a copy of the trust. Anyone named as a beneficiary is entitled to receive a copy of the trust. If he was named as a successor trustee, then he must do as the trust dictates. You should act quickly to protect any rights that you might have.
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