beneficiary of trust needs help
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beneficiary of trust needs help
i am a beneficiary of my parents trust. there is a trustee who i believe is
abuseing the trust, she has not provided me with a copy, my parents attorney says
ask the trustee. my parents have passed, i am in ca. she is in oregon. what can i
do?
Asked on June 5, 2017 under Estate Planning, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Since you are a beneficiary, you have an interest in the trust--an economic stake in it. That interest gives you standing: the right to bring a legal action. You can bring an action for an "accounting": that is, ask the court to examine the trustee and make her "account" for her actions. If the trustee is violating either or both of the terms of the trust (e.g. the instructions in it, for what she can or must do) and/or her fiduciary duty (the obligation, imposed by law on trustees, to act in the interests of the trust and its beneficiaries, and not for her own interests or the interests of other persons), the court can order her to repay to the trust whatever it lost due to her, and/or remove her as trustee. An action for an accounting is brought in chancery court (a part or division of county court) and is much more procedurally complex than, say, a small claims case; you are strongly encouraged to retain an attorey with trusts and estates experience to represent you.
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