Power of Attorney VS Trustee

[andreajb1128]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

I have a friend in an odd situation. Her mother is 91 and recently had cancer surgery. She has been recovering at home and has home caregivers. The mom has a trust run by a trustee at a bank. This trustee seems to be vindictive and power hungry, according to what my friend has been telling me. My friend has Power of Attorney for her mom, but the trustee removed it from the bank. The Trustee is saying the mom is not in her right mind and that the daughter, my friend, cannot have the Power of Attorney. They have a doctor's letter proving the mom is okay to make decisions, but her ability is waning. This is a really long and complicated story, so to make it short, my first question is, who has more power? The Trustee at the bank, who was recently promoted from Trust Advisor to Vice President, or my friend who has Power of Attorney and is the direct decendent of the Grantor, her mom??
I told my friend they could just remove the Trustee and get a new one, but the mom gave up her trusteeship years ago. Second question: Can't she just reclaim her trust and then assign it to a successor trustee?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
I hope someone can answer ASAP. Time is of the essence!

[BlondiePB]

Originally Posted by andreajb1128

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

I have a friend in an odd situation. Her mother is 91 and recently had cancer surgery. She has been recovering at home and has home caregivers. The mom has a trust run by a trustee at a bank. This trustee seems to be vindictive and power hungry, according to what my friend has been telling me. My friend has Power of Attorney for her mom, but the trustee removed it from the bank. The Trustee is saying the mom is not in her right mind and that the daughter, my friend, cannot have the Power of Attorney. They have a doctor's letter proving the mom is okay to make decisions, but her ability is waning. This is a really long and complicated story, so to make it short, my first question is, who has more power? The Trustee at the bank, who was recently promoted from Trust Advisor to Vice President, or my friend who has Power of Attorney and is the direct decendent of the Grantor, her mom??
I told my friend they could just remove the Trustee and get a new one, but the mom gave up her trusteeship years ago. Second question: Can't she just reclaim her trust and then assign it to a successor trustee?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
I hope someone can answer ASAP. Time is of the essence!

The Trustee controls all property in the trust and if given the power to do so, can put whatever else in trust as so stated in the trust document. The POA has no power over what is in trust unless the POA is of the trust which is extremely rare.

The settlor of the trust (your friend's mom) can make whatever changes she wants to the trust, including who is the trustee as long as she is mentally competent to do so and the trust is not irrevocable. She, the mom, needs to see a trust attorney.