Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Utah

revocable trust

My parents put everything they owned into two equal revocable trusts, with their children as beneficiaries. When my mom died, our dad became the trustee of Mom's trust, until his own death a few years ago.

We had a stepmother who made Dad sign deeds giving her children some property before he died. She forgot that the trusts each owned half of the land and that Dad was a trustee of both trusts and not an individual owner. The county rejected the deeds as invalid for those reasons, so our family trust still owns the land and pays the taxes.

Our stepsiblings think they should have the property anyway, claiming that it was Dad's ''intent'' to give it to them. Even if that were the case, would he have had the right to give them property from Mom's trust? Is there any law or precedent governing a case such as this? Or, is there any general law that says a trust is inviolable once the person dies? (Dad sold some property after Mom died, but her half of the proceeds was put back into the trust or distributed to the beneficiaries. )


Asked on 1/04/07, 6:43 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Alvin Lundgren Alvin R. Lundgren, L.C.

Re: revocable trust

Generally the kind of trusts you describe become irrevocable on the death of the grantor (your mom). Upon the death of your father both trusts were irrevocable. In order to convey title your father would have had to have done so as trustee of both trusts. Since the deed was rejected by the recorder, title still lies in the trusts. The trustees are bound by the terms of the trust and do not have discretion to violate the trust based on the claims of the step children. The trustees will have to dispose of the property according to the trust and disburse the assets to the beneficiaries according to the trust. The beneficiaries can, if they wish, share the proceeds with the step children.

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Answered on 1/05/07, 10:57 am


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