Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois
My step mother passed away in Feb of this year (IL) and had a trust in my fathers name and an out of state bank (MI) that was later acquired by PNC. The will is in probate but there is mass confusion as to how to handle the bank as a trustee. The insurance company will not release the life insurance funds until they know what type of account to set up regarding the bank as trustee. The bank says they are waiting for some new insurance bill to pass that addresses this issue. In the mean time my father has not been able to get the life insurance money and he really needs it. Is there any way to remove the bank as a trustee and just have it in my fathers name? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
2 Answers from Attorneys
I'm confused too. I assume the life insurance names a beneficiary. It sounds like this trust is the beneficiary. If the trust has an acting trustee and a death certificate is provided (and the circumstances surrounding death are not questionable) then I'm not sure what the holdup should be. Waiting for an insurance bill to pass? That doesn't make sense. Something doesn't add up. It might be possible to have the bank removed, depending on the terms of the trust.
Your first step is to ask an attorney to review the Trust. It may provide a method to remove the Trustee or another solution. If the Trust document doesn't provide an easy option, you need to put pressure on the bank. One way to do so is to have an attorney call the bank. Sometimes, this can push a bank into getting things done. However, if the bank offers further resistance, you may have to file pleadings in Court in order to make them do what they are supposed to.
Feel free to give me a call if you'd like to discuss this further. I won't charge for the phone call.
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