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Specific bequests

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imwildfire

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? CA

My mother passed away 4-6-05 and two of my siblings are co-trustees. They promised to be "open and transparent". They have not seeked any advice from an attorney and are plunging headlong into settling this trust. I have not requested any detailed accounting from them, but I did ask for copies of the statements of my mother's assets and liabilities. They keep acting like they don't know what that means. I would just like to see the condition of my mother's estate upon her death. There are 5 of us and I know one other sibling has asked for the same thing. We found out there was a loan due that the two trustees didn't want us to find out about because it was for the benefit of the third sibling who is not a trustee. This is not a large estate with many accounts so we're not asking for many copies. We think it seems so simple and can't understand why they are dragging their feet and playing dumb. Are we asking for too much?

These same trustees have decided to distribute all of the estate's cash assets with the exception of a few thousand dollars to be held for expenses on the house that is currently listed to be sold. There are two specific bequests for my mother's stepchildren and instead of paying those bequests after paying all other debts, they have distributed a token sum to the stepchildren and divided and paid the rest to the five of us. I have tried to tell the trustees that those specific bequests were supposed to be paid before us since we get the residual. Now the house must be sold before the stepchildren can be paid since there is not enough money left to pay them at this time. I've tried to find the law regarding the order of payment from a trust, but I not able to find it. Any help on where that can be found? I think I need to send that to the trustees before they distribute anything else.

Thank you.
 


Dandy Don

Senior Member
You have the right as a beneficiary to ask for a copy of the trust and an accounting statement by having your attorney send the trustee a certified letter requesting such. Your suspicions are well founded.

When you send that letter it's a good idea to also include a suggestion/warning that they get legal advice for consultation in carrying out their official duties, because from what you've described they've already committed an error in what they've paid out without giving priority to the bequest you've described--maybe they are afraid that an attorney's advice would be too expensive but they need to check out price comparisions to find out what the actual cost would be, because their liability as trustees to correct their errors could be much more costly than what an attorney would cost. If they don't know what an accounting statement means, then they need to be consulting with an attorney and/or accountant to find out--that is part of their job as trustee.

Your attorney may also want to suggest that the trustees purchase a trustee's bond to protect the financial interest of the beneficiaries in case of trustee mismanagement, or ask the court to ask the trustees to purchase the bond.

Looks like they are trying to get what they can from the cash that is there without waiting for the home to be sold, and there is no guarantee that the sale will even happen for sure, although it is likely that it will occur.

Is there a will being probated and a trust, or were all of the assets put only into the trust?

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])
 

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