Probate Litigation Cases – Trustees who take what is not theirs…

There are three types of situations that might develop during a probate trust administration case.  First, the people all work well together and the assets are distributed rather easily.  The second way is that the parties have some difficulty working through the issues; there is a fair amount of friction but in the end it all gets divided without too much trouble.  The third way is when there is a knockdown drag out fight that would make “Rocky” blush.  When this happens the person who is put in charge, immediately takes on the role of dropping an iron curtain around the assets and information surrounding the assets and their intended distribution.  These people will sometimes act alone or in concert with the parties who favor them.  They will then move to take what they want and empty the trust with little or no regard to those who were the intended beneficiaries of the assets.  When this happens, I have been asked by the court to step in and have been asked by the beneficiaries that have been kept from the trust assets to help.  These cases are not simple and they can run well on past the money that would have been garnered by the beneficiaries.  Many times I have been retained to represent these beneficiaries only after the “bad actors” have removed all the assets and sold or donated them without so much as a funeral being done for the decedent.

When there is a high likelihood of a fight, it is best to get good information beforehand about the way the assets are to be distributed and what the intentions of the trust creator were when the trust was created.  It is not best to wait until after there is a problem.  If you have a concern, come in for a consultation, so that you may benefit from our years of handling these types of cases.

If you have benefited from these posts please feel free to write a comment.

Todd Courser 810-245-0813