• 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.

Beneficiary of Spendthrift Trust has rights?

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

bee*p

Junior Member
What is the name of your state?spendthrift trust

A trust created for a beneficiary the grantor considers irresponsible about money. The trustee keeps control of the trust income, doling out money to the beneficiary as needed, and sometimes paying third parties (creditors, for example) on the beneficiary's behalf, bypassing the beneficiary completely. Spendthrift trusts typically contain a provision prohibiting creditors from seizing the trust fund to satisfy the beneficiary's debts. These trusts are legal in most states, even though creditors hate them.
 
Last edited:


Dandy Don

Senior Member
You need to be talking to a local trust attorney about this since it is most unlikely that a Massachusetts trust attorney would be reading this message board. If you can't find a local trust attorney you may want to post a brief version of your question on www.lawguru.com.

Many states allow a beneficiary to request an accounting statement and a copy of the trust by sending the trustee a certified letter requesting such, and your attorney can tell you whether Massachusetts allows this or not.

You say "no provision in trust for eventual disbursement of trust to me at any age" but you need an attorney to help you determine if in fact this is the case. If it is the case and if it is also true that she left instructions for you to leave it to whoever you wish, then it looks like you are correct when you say mom wants to exert extreme control. However, there probably is a loophole in the language that would allow you to get partial disbursements at some point, otherwise what would have been the point of setting up the trust and naming you as a beneficiary, unless she and the real estate executor/trustee schemed together to dangle this money before you like carrot on a stick without intending for you to actually receive anything. A spendthrift trust is normally set up for a person who is a minor to save the money for future use, so it is somewhat odd that your mother did not think of you as being a responsible enough adult to be able to handle money on your own.

If you wanted to, you could challenge the spendthrift provision of this trust but that might be expensive in legal fees. If this lady is managing the trust, then she is a trustee (and should be called that), not just an executor. Term executor only applies to the will (was there a will that was probated or just a trust?). In case this lady dies, you need to ask who the successor trustee will be following her or suggest that the trust assets be sent to a bank trust department for the bank to manage.

Your request for a portion of the trust was reasonable, and trustee's belligerence was a bit unreasonable (her comment that you have a house to live in is beside the point--the real point is that if you were named as a beneficiary to receive anything else from this trust, then she has a fiduciary obligation to give it to you upon your request. Your response should be a polite and tactful "I'm grateful for the opportunity to live in the home, but I also need money for living expenses and other special needs." It helps when requesting money that you give the reasons for wanting the money--your attorney can help advise you about how to ask after he has reviewed the trust document. The trust should have mentioned reasonable allowances/conditions for you to request money from the trust and the trustee should expect you to ask for money at least once or twice a year. You probably will not be able to get your money all at one time, but you will be able to receive it in installments.

Your comments about the value of the trust are a bit confusing. You say that the bulk of the estate is in the home, and then you say it also includes $60,000 in CD's.

(1) You or your attorney needs to find out how the CD account owner is listed at the bank-is it in the name of the trust or the decedent only or both?
Who is the beneficiary of the CD? What is the redemption date of the CD?

Putting the money into a CD was somewhat of an odd choice since it ties the money up until a certain date in the future--a smarter choice would have been to put it into a money market fund or mutual fund so that the trustee could conveniently cash it in at any time. Perhaps you and your attorney may be able to suggest that the form of this asset be changed. The difficulty now is if there is no other money in the trust, if the only asset that has cash value is the CD, then you wouldn't be able to get any money now since the CD is not yet able to be redeemed.

From now on, please submit the property tax bill to the trustee for the trust to pay--that is NOT your responsibility.

Your trust attorney can help you figure out a reasonable way to request money from this trustee but your attorney will first have to look at the form of the assets and get the accounting information (including a copy of the bank account statement) before deciding how to proceed.

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

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