Many legal issues arise because one person fails to follow through with obligations he or she agreed to fulfill. This also applies to trust litigation filed by beneficiaries against trustees who they believe breached their fiduciary duties. Basically, a beneficiary is challenging the actions of the trustee. There are other reasons why challenging a California trust may be just as appropriate.
Perhaps you believe that another family member or potential beneficiary has unduly influenced the grantor (creator) of the trust from which you may benefit. However, just having such a belief will more than likely not be enough to challenge the provisions of the trust. Instead, you may need to gather the appropriate evidence that proves your assertions. This often involves proving that the grantor is vulnerable and that the other person stood to gain something by influencing the grantor.
In other cases, whether the grantor was able to execute the trust may come into question. If competency is an issue, you may have to prove to the court that the person creating the trust suffered from some sort of mental deficiency backed up by medical documentation. Even so, you may also need to show that the person lacked the competency to understand the extent of his or her assets or know what it means to put assets into a trust, along with whether the individual knows who the potential beneficiaries are.
Trust litigation can arise out of a number of circumstances other than just a breach of fiduciary duty. If you, as a beneficiary, believe that either undue influence or a competency issue affected the way the trust was written or who benefits from it, you may have cause for challenging the trust. In order to know for sure, it may be beneficial to discuss your particular situation with a California trust litigation attorney.
Source: budgeting.thenest.com, “How to Challenge a Living Trust”, Stephanie Reid, Accessed on March 11, 2018