• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

Living Trust question

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

jimtnc

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Tennessee

I've already gotten an answer to this, but I mistated the question as a living will instead of a living trust. Does this make a huge difference to my original question.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Regarding a living trust in Tennessee, can the contents of the trust be altered, changed, liquidated by the executor or co-executors??

Optional Information:
crossville, tn, Tennessee

Already Tried:
Nothing. My sister an I were designated co-executors of my folks estate, and my Mom just passed away a month ago. My sister lives there, and I live 500 miles away, so signing legal documents from that distance and getting banking priviledges as a trustee is difficult...so I delegated full authority to her to administer things. I don't think there's a problem with the money, but just checking.
 


anteater

Senior Member
First, the person(s) administering a trust are called trustee(s).

By "contents", do you mean the assets in the trust rather than the trust document itself?

The trust document usually spells out what authority the trustee(s) has.

Maybe you can be a bit more specific in your question.
 

jimtnc

Junior Member
Yes, I did mean the listed items in the trust and not the document, per se. I haven't seen the document, but my mother specifically wanted my sister an I to share the trust assets as an inheritance.

When I mistated this as a "living will" the lawyer told me "the living will can be changed by only the draftors of the living will - no one else." I certainly hope that also holds true for the living trust.
 

TrustUser

Senior Member
let me re-iterate what anteater said - the trust document itself can only be changed by the grantor. these instructions dictate what you can do with the property that it owns.

from what i am hearing, your mom basically just wanted what was typical - for the 2 of you to inherit her wealth equally. unless the trust document says so specifically, it does not sound like she had any particular wishes for any particular property.

if these assets are to remain in trust after her death, the document must specifically say so.

otherwise, there is usually some sort of distirubtion plan - be it all immediately, or at stage invtervals.

and also remember that the estate, which is managed by the executor and the trust which is managed by the trustee are 2 separate animals.
 

jimtnc

Junior Member
I don't think I represented this correctly. My mom passed away, but my step-dad is still alive. He broke his hip, which spurned the heart attack that my mom passed away from, and that has been surgically repaired...but he is still unable to stand and is in a nursing home for rehab. He also is in an advanced stage of Alzheimers, so my sister, with my consent, has been added to their checking account as a "trustee" and can sign checks as the trustee.

From what I've been told, the trustee could liquidate the assets if they so chose to, but would be liable to severe court action (from me and my consul) if she did so because the assets are untimately for the beneficiaries when and after my step-dad would pass (I say this only because of his failing health now). Until then, we are obligated to make sure he is taken care of, which my sister is doing the lions-share of. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm thinking this is not a problem situation.

Having said that and not having seen the trust document, I have to assume that that wording of the trust would entail the care of my step-dad until his death, then the assets to be divided equally. Any problems here??
 
Last edited:

BlondiePB

Senior Member
let me re-iterate what anteater said - the trust document itself can only be changed by the grantor. these instructions dictate what you can do with the property that it owns.

from what i am hearing, your mom basically just wanted what was typical - for the 2 of you to inherit her wealth equally. unless the trust document says so specifically, it does not sound like she had any particular wishes for any particular property.

if these assets are to remain in trust after her death, the document must specifically say so.

otherwise, there is usually some sort of distirubtion plan - be it all immediately, or at stage invtervals.

and also remember that the estate, which is managed by the executor and the trust which is managed by the trustee are 2 separate animals.
Care to change your answer now that the OP has replied after your post?

I have more to say, especially on other thread(s), but cannot do so at this moment.

Where can I take mind reading 101? :eek:
 

anteater

Senior Member
I don't think I represented this correctly. My mom passed away, but my step-dad is still alive. He broke his hip, which spurned the heart attack that my mom passed away from, and that has been surgically repaired...but he is still unable to stand and is in a nursing home for rehab. He also is in an advanced stage of Alzheimers, so my sister, with my consent, has been added to their checking account as a "trustee" and can sign checks as the trustee.

From what I've been told, the trustee could liquidate the assets if they so chose to, but would be liable to severe court action (from me and my consul) if she did so because the assets are untimately for the beneficiaries when and after my step-dad would pass (I say this only because of his failing health now). Until then, we are obligated to make sure he is taken care of, which my sister is doing the lions-share of. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm thinking this is not a problem situation.

Having said that and not having seen the trust document, I have to assume that that wording of the trust would entail the care of my step-dad until his death, then the assets to be divided equally. Any problems here??
Whoa! That's one of the best curveballs I've seen in majors this year! What seemed a simple question about successor trustees after the grantor's death morphed into... into... Well, I'm not sure what exactly.

Anyway, I don't think that you mean to use the phrase "liquidate the assets." Trustees often need to liquidate assets - real property, stocks, annuities, etc. - in the course of administering a trust. Maybe you mean "liberate" the assets, as in the way that my friends and I would occasionally "liberate" bags of M&M's from the corner drugstore. Before we understood the plight of the small businessperson and became law-abiding citizens, of course. In other words, stealing.

What it comes down to is: Do you have some reason to distrust your sister?
 
Last edited:

TrustUser

Senior Member
no, there is nothing that i would like to change about my answer, due to the fact that the op posted again.

sorry anteater if i put words in your mouth.
 

TrustUser

Senior Member
anteater never said any such thing because he and I know that your statement is false.
if you want to make a point, make it completely.

if i tell someone he is wrong, i also tell him why i think so.

of course i am not god. neither are judges, but every once in awhile you need to remind them of it.
 

jimtnc

Junior Member
Thanks for all the replies. I guess in a round-about way y'all are telling me you really don't know unless you see the document. I just wanted a ball-park response. I realize she may need to use some of the trust assets in the care of my step-dad, and that's fine and as it shoiuld be.

No, I really don't have a reason to distrust my sister, but stranger things have happened when there's significant money involved, correct? Let me rephrase: would signing over my co-trusteeship/authority in this trust to her be the prudent thing to do since she is right there and I am 500 miles away, given what has already been explained?
 
Last edited:

TrustUser

Senior Member
i dont think i would worry about it.

you would not have to sign something that says you cant be re-instated as trustee.

you might also at least want to read the document. in mine, i always give the beneficiary the right to choose the trustee, so you definitely would not lose the ability to get re-instated.

this site is full of people who have misbehaved. but then the only people who are gonna post is those who have problems. i suspect the overwhelming percentage of siblings do not cheat on one another.

so if your sister seems trustworthy to you, i say go with that flow.
 

BlondiePB

Senior Member
no, there is nothing that i would like to change about my answer, due to the fact that the op posted again.

sorry anteater if i put words in your mouth.
How can the settlor/grantor change this trust document? :confused:

When I posted my last reply TrustUser, I was rushed. Please accept my apology for thinking you were TruthandHonor. :eek:
 

TrustUser

Senior Member
hi blondie,

the grantor/trustor could not change this document, because both parents are deceased, if i am understanding correctly.

so, since the typical living trust can only be changed by the grantor, this document is no longer able to be amended.

there may be some special cases, that i have never heard about happening.

for example, i would have to review trust law, which i am not interested in doing.

most people dont realize that there are many laws attached to a trust, as a default. so if one does not mention something in his trust, then the default position is used. i dont try to memorize what any of these defaults are.

there are also a very few laws that a trust document can not change. but VERY FEW.

so if i write a trust document that allows my trustee to change it, i dont know if that would be legal or not. i am not sure if that has ever been tried. but it certainly is rare.

so without attempting to name every possible situation, the overwhelming dictates are: that only the grantor can make changes to the document itself.

and to be honest, that is a good thing. if that were not the case, a heckuva lot more trusts would end up in court. the whole purpose for a trust is for the grantor to dictate his wishes as to how his finances are managed, given away, etc.

and i think we should differentiate between a judge making a ruling on a document versus someone else actually making a change to the document.

anyways, that's my take - nice talking to you.
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top