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Trustee breaching?

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Diesel84

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

My grandma passed away and left a living trust. My sister and I are the beneficiarys. My sister is also the trustee. My mother who is an only child is getting $10k and not happy about it. My sister and I are to split proceeds from the estate once it sells 50/50. My mom is working really hard on my sisters emotions and mental strength to get her to to give her more money which obviously isnt what my grandma wanted or she would have changed things before she died. all my mom cares about is money and my sister is naive and puts her head in the sand and is thinking of giving in to her. what can I do to stop this from happening? and if it does end up happening what could I do afterwards because things arent looking good
 


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anteater

Senior Member
You can explain to her that her duty as the successor trustee is to administer the trust in accordance with the trust document and not how she or someone else wishes that it were written. And that it is fine if she wishes to gift some of what she receives to your mother, but she can't arbitrarily decide to gift some of what another beneficiary is to receive to her mother.

DUTIES AND POWERS OF TRUSTEE

130.650 UTC 801. Duty to administer trust. Upon acceptance of a trusteeship, the trustee shall administer the trust in good faith, in accordance with its terms and purposes and the interests of the beneficiaries, and in accordance with this chapter. [2005 c.348 §59]
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Regarding anything that you can do before the fact, it is a fuzzy area. After all, you would be alleging that she is thinking of doing something rather than something that she has actually done. But you would have to consult with an Oregon attorney on that. If she does do something that harms your interests, then you take her to court for breach of her duty.

LIABILITY OF TRUSTEE AND RIGHTS OF PERSONS DEALING WITH TRUSTEE

130.800 UTC 1001. Remedies for breach of trust. (1) A violation by a trustee of a duty the trustee owes to a beneficiary is a breach of trust. A breach of trust may occur by reason of an action or by reason of a failure to act.
(2) To remedy a breach of trust that has occurred or to prevent a breach of trust, the court may:
(a) Compel the trustee to perform the trustee’s duties;
(b) Enjoin the trustee from committing a breach of trust;
(c) Compel the trustee to pay money or restore property;
(d) Order a trustee to account;
(e) Appoint a special fiduciary to take possession of the trust property and administer the trust;
(f) Suspend the trustee;
(g) Remove the trustee as provided in ORS 130.625;
(h) Reduce or deny compensation to the trustee;
(i) Subject to ORS 130.855, void an act of the trustee, impose a lien or a constructive trust on trust property, or trace trust property wrongfully disposed of and recover the property or its proceeds; or
(j) Order any other appropriate relief. [2005 c.348 §83]

130.805 UTC 1002. Damages for breach of trust. (1) A trustee who commits a breach of trust is liable to the beneficiaries affected for the greater of:
(a) The amount of damages caused by the breach;
(b) The amount required to restore the value of the trust property and trust distributions to what they would have been had the breach not occurred; or
(c) The profit the trustee made by reason of the breach.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, if more than one trustee is liable to the beneficiaries for a breach of trust, a trustee is entitled to contribution from the other trustee or trustees. In determining the amount of contribution, the court shall consider the degree of fault of each trustee and whether any trustee or trustees acted in bad faith or with reckless indifference to the purposes of the trust or the interests of the beneficiaries. A trustee who received a benefit from the breach of trust is not entitled to contribution from another trustee to the extent of the benefit received. [2005 c.348 §84]

130.810 UTC 1003. Damages in absence of breach. (1) Except as provided by ORS 130.725 (4) and (15) or 709.175 or other law of this state, a trustee is accountable to an affected beneficiary for any profit made by the trustee arising from the administration of the trust, without regard to whether the profit resulted from a breach of trust.
(2) Unless there is a breach of trust, a trustee is not liable to a beneficiary for a loss or depreciation in the value of trust property or for not having made a profit. [2005 c.348 §85]

130.815 UTC 1004. Attorney fees and costs. In a judicial proceeding involving the validity or administration of a trust, the court may award costs and expenses and reasonable attorney’s fees to any party, to be paid by another party or from the trust. [2005 c.348 §86]
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If you wish to peruse the entire Oregon Uniform Trust Code:

http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/130.html
 
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D

Diesel84

Junior Member
thank you

thank you for the response... Is there anything in general I need to be aware of or any steps I can take as a beneficiary to protect myself and my rights? Sometimes I feel like just waiting for the money is not a pro-active approach and it just gives certain people more time to create negative impacts on the situation. the house could be for sale for 2 months or 2 years with the way the market is right now so what can I do in meantime?
 
A

anteater

Senior Member
Ask your sister to step down as successor trustee?

Tell her straight out that, if she does not follow the trust provisions, you will see her in court?

Read the Oregon code at the link provided - particularly the "Duty to Inform" section.

Beneficiaries are not meant to be "proactive."
 
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curb1

Senior Member
Anteater,

I think you had a typo above (maybe not). You said, "Tell her straight out that, if she does follow the trust provisions, you will see her in court"?

Should that read, "Tell her straight out that, if she does not follow the trust provisions, you will see her in court".
 
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