Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

It depends on the terms of the trust, but 6 mos- 1 yr. is not uncommon. The Trustee first has to send notices to the beneficiaries and most attys will recommend waiting at least 4 mos after that to disburse in case there is any challenge to the trust. He also has to make sure there are no unknown creditors lurking and that all of the trustor's bills, costs of administration and income taxes are paid. He does have a duty to keep the beneficiaries informed re: administration of the trust, so you should feel free to ask him in writing to give you an estimated time when the funds will be disbursed.

He has a duty also to place the funds, in the interim, in an interest bearing account but nowadays that amount of interest would be a negligible amount (depending on how much we are talking about here).