You may be among the California residents who have heard the phrase, “With great power comes great responsibility.” This applies to many situations, including that of being a trustee. As a beneficiary, you may feel as though you are at the whim and will of a trustee. You may feel that something isn’t right and may be considering trust litigation. Before you do, it may help to understand at least some of the powers given to a trustee that he or she may be abusing.
Some of a trustee’s powers come from the trust itself while others are given by law. When it comes to the assets in a trust, a trustee generally has the power to collect, sell, buy and otherwise make decisions regarding them. A trustee is bound to protect the property in the trust, pay any required taxes and deal with claims against the trust. This may involve using alternative dispute resolution options or going to court.
The trustee is also in charge of making distributions to you and any other beneficiaries of the trust in accordance with its terms. This could easily become problematic if the trust provides a great deal of discretion to the trustee. What many people fail to understand is that the trustee is actually supposed to look out for the beneficiaries, not the creator of the trust, but not all trustees fulfill this duty.
Understanding the powers that a trustee has may help you determine whether he or she is abusing them. In order to be sure, it may prove useful to discuss the matter with a California attorney with experience in trusts and trust litigation. After a review of your situation, he or she should be able to advise you whether filing a lawsuit is appropriate.
Source: thismatter.com, “General and Specific Powers of the Trustee”, Accessed on Jan. 13, 2018