Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois

Re: What am I entitled to as a Beneficiary to a Trust

According to most bank trust departments, you are entitled to see only those trust provisions relevant to your share of the trust. I believe that includes the bequest, and the power of the trustee to pay income between the date of death and the ultimate distribution. You may also be subject to a provision that withholds your share until you reach a certain age or achieve certain conditions.

You are also entitled to an accounting periodically.

Given your uncle's animus, you may also want to check on whether assets transferred outside of trust at your uncle's death, or shortly before.

Because of the multiplicity of potential issues, you should consult with an attorney and share all of the facts of which you are aware. Having at attorney in the picture will not diminish your rights, and, in light of how it's going, probably won't make the procedure any less difficult.

I believe that if you sue the trustee for an accounting, etc. you would be entitled to receive a copy of the entire trust pursuant to discovery. However, there may be a provision in the trust which is intended to discourage lawsuits against the trustee, so proceed cautiously, and with the advice of a lawyer.

Our comments are based on treating your question as a hypothetical. Accordingly, our comments could be substantially and materially different were we advised of all of the relevant facts and circumstances. Our comments are by necessity general in nature, and should not be relied upon in taking or forgoing action in your circumstances without retaining an attorney. In order to fully explore your legal matter, you should meet with us or another attorney and bring to any such meeting all relevant documents and correspondence, and any other relevant facts.

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As you are aware, in Illinois there are various deadlines for filing a complaint, filing an answer to a complaint, or taking other action in order to preserve your legal rights, and avoid a complete loss of those rights. You should retain counsel immediately in order to be fully advised of your rights, and to be fully informed of the applicable time period within which those rights must be asserted. If you were to delay in doing so, it might result in your potential cause of action being forever barred.