Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
My mother passed away several months ago. I was the trustee on her bank account under the terms of her living trust. After paying all bills and cancelling every automatic payment I could find, I closed out her checking account. She was being charged for several automatic payments that turned out to be senior scams. After closing her account, another such charge was submitted to the bank. They have sent me a letter asking me to pay the overdraft fee for the charge against a closed account. I did not authorize the charge to be submitted. Am I liable for the overdraft charge?
1 Answer from Attorneys
I would take the position that the account was closed, and it's the bank's fault for making the payment.
In any event, you do not owe the money personally. The trust and estate does, and there's a one-year statute of limitation on suing over the debts of a decedent.