Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
The trustee of our irrevocable trust provided a formal trust accounting after a written beneficiary request but did not include a report of her trustee compensation. Written requests for this omitted information were sent first to the estate attorney who sent us the account and, after waiting seven without receiving a response or explanation, a request was sent directly to the trustee. There are no provisions in the Trust Agreement that exempt the trustee from providing this information, so I want to know if there are any legitimate reasons for withholding this information required under C.P.C. section 16063(a)(3) before I petition the Court purusant to C.P.C.section 17200(b)(7)? The only explanation I can give is that she is paying herself from an account she set-up outside the trust with trust funds she said were gifted to her children and another beneficiary's children at the time of the Trustor's death but she stated she will distribute any funds remaining from this account after the estate is settled, indicating she considers them as part of the beneficaries' inheritance. Thank you.
1 Answer from Attorneys
There is no valid reason for withholding the trustee's compensation information. If trustee compensation was paid it should have been included in the accounting and, depending on the circumstances, Court approval may have been required. Likewise, if the trustee was being compensated outside of the trust, this should have been disclosed. It is likely that a Court will take a dim view of a trustee that refuses to disclose information about his or her compensation.
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