Thanks, TrustUser and anteater.
there should be specific instructions - that is what normally happens. it should be well-outlined as how to make distributions.
The trust doc was written in the early nineties and not updated. One parent died about 10 years ago; the other about a year ago, at which point ST took over.
In the doc that established the revocable trust, there is a section that outlines the powers of the ST. Many things are listed, most with respect to assets (investment accounts) that were all depleted over the course of many years, spent on day-to-day living and med costs (as anteater surmised). There is no mention of any time frames for distribution in the document. Handwritten at the end is a message that again states that the grandchildren should get $40,000 each, and the balance should be split between the siblings (one of which is ST), but no time frame given.
if it is not, the trust simply was not written well, and you guys may need to come to some sort of agreement, if you dont want it taken to court.
The parents trusted ST and so do all the heirs. Unless something egregious happens, no one will go to court. We are hopeful that it won't come to this.
My question arose when ST paid one grandchild (his own child) early from his personal funds. A second grandchild (not one of ST’s) asked if it would be possible to be paid before the property is sold and ST said no. A family friend said that as far as he knows, the ST has a duty to pay the grandchildren now or at least when they need their inheritance. That's what prompted me to post here. As anteater wrote, The trustee has a fiduciary duty to all the interested parties. Everyone trusts that ST will pay the rest of the grandchildren once the property has sold. But if there is a long delay of several years, we wonder if the grandchildren might have any recourse.
i would think that at a bare minimum, a bank account should be opened up in the trustee's name, so that rents can be deposited, insurance and taxes can be paid, as well as repairs.
There is indeed a bank account; ST is keeping very good records and is honest. There is just this one situation that we wonder about. It was hurtful for one grandchild to be paid right away and another refused. I suppose the advance made to ST’s child would be seen as a private loan, and ST feels no obligation to loan to grandchildren of the other sibling.
Thanks again.
OL