Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

Sorry, but the lack of proper punctation and running together of ideas makes it very difficult for me to understand the facts of your posting. If you wre named co-trustee then all acts under the trust instructions must be agreed to by you; your failure initially do anything does not change that requirement, unless the trust instructions so state. Any act done without your required signature is not legal and could be overturned, even if there was no intention to act contrary to the trust instructions.

A power of attorney provision automatically expires upon the death of the person granting the POA. If the bank account allows for one of several people to withdraw funds, which is what many joint accounts provide for, then your sister-in-law could probably take out funds on her own, although the bank by its own rules would have wanted to know of the death of one of teh account holders. Some accounts require everyone on the account to agree to any withdrawals.

Without knowing the details of what actually occurred [has a probate been opened, etc.], none of us can give you any reliable or reasoned advice on where you stand and what you can do. You either need to repost yuor questions with a detailed description of the significant facts or I could speak with you [510-441-2684], without charge, for about 10 minutes to see what is really going on. If you want to call me, it would be best if you mailed me a copy [do not send originals or copies that need to be returned] of the trust agreement, bank account instructions, POA, and other relevant documents so that I have them handy when we speak and know what they actually provide for.

You should not use your name in any postings on this site.

not proof read