Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois
fiduciary rights
I am a beneficiary to my great grandmothers trust agreement. I called the attorney that drafted her trust and asked for a copy. He told me to call the Trustee, my grandmother, and ask. I haven't talked with her in years, so my attorney (who is from another state and doesn't know IL law) wrote her and asked. I was sent a copy. It looks like it's been tampered with. My questions are:
Should this ''trust agreement'' have been notarized when it was signed?
I want a copy of the original sent by the attorney that drafted it. Is he resposible for this request, even if I have a copy from my grandmother?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: fiduciary rights
No, the trust agreement does not have to be notarized. It need only be signed by the maker of the trust [sometimes called the grantor or settlor] and the trustee. Often in living trusts the settlor and the trustee are one and the same person, so it might be signed only once.
The attorney is not responsible for your request. In fact he should not send it to you with out his client's permission. In addition the attorney that drafted the trust and the attorney for the trustee [your grandmother] may not even be the same person. Only the trustee can direct the attorney for the trustee to act. He can NOT act on his own.
Re: fiduciary rights
Many people attach some special value to being notarized.
For the most part, notarization merely says "That signature by John Doe was in fact by John Doe". With a few exceptions, notarization is not a requirement to make an item official.
The documents are now the property of the trustee. The attorney not only doesn't have to, but *may not* reveal those documents without her consent.
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