A trustee is tasked with serving as your financial guardian for a trust and protecting an inheritance with unwavering loyalty. However, trustee misconduct occur when they fail to properly manage the trust or actively jeopardize your financial future for their own gain. But you don’t have to sit idly by while a trustee abuses their power over the trust at your expense. As soon as you suspect misconduct is occurring, it’s time to take action.
At Gokal Law Group, we have spent years helping beneficiaries like you enforce their rights to defend them against trustees who cannot or will not do their job. Here is what you need to know about trustee misconduct and when you should work with an attorney.
Related Article: How Gokal Law Group Helps Clients Succeed in Litigation
What is Trustee Misconduct in California?
A trustee has several fiduciary duties they are legally obligated to uphold. Essentially, these duties are to always act in the best interest of the beneficiaries and trust. They must also manage the trust prudently, with loyalty, care, and good faith.
Trustee misconduct occurs when a trustee violates these duties in what is called a breach of fiduciary duty. A breach of fiduciary duty can occur in many different ways, ranging from stealing from the trust to failing to make the trust profitable. As a beneficiary, you have rights you can enforce.
As soon as you suspect a trustee is not fulfilling their responsibilities to you or the trust, contact an attorney. Misconduct can have a significant impact on your inheritance and undermine the integrity of the entire trust, and can be grounds to pursue litigation and hold them accountable.
Related Article: How Do You Prove a Breach of Fiduciary Duty?
What Are Signs of Trustee Misconduct?
Several signs point to trustee misconduct, including unexplained changes to the trust’s finances, missing funds, or strange transactions, as well as a lack of transparency or communication with beneficiaries. Another warning sign of trustee misconduct is the trustee ignoring or dismissing beneficiary questions or concerns.
While distributing assets can take time depending on the circumstances surrounding the trust, unreasonable delays in distributions could also signal that the trustee is not fulfilling their duties.
Related Article: What if a Trustee Refuses to Distribute Assets?
What Are Examples of Trustee Misconduct?
A trustee can be removed from their position, held personally liable, and/or ordered to pay damages to the trust if found guilty of misconduct. Common examples of trustee misconduct include:
- Fraud
- Not following the terms of the trust
- Mismanaging trust assets (e.g., failing to diversify investments, neglecting property maintenance, or making inadvisable financial decisions that hurt the trust’s value)
- Misappropriation or theft of trust property
- Disloyalty to trust beneficiaries
- Permitting a co-trustee to breach their fiduciary duty
- Negligence or incompetence in managing the trust
- Commingling trust assets with their own
- Favoring one beneficiary over one or more beneficiaries
- Self-dealing
- Operating with conflicts of interests
- Failing to provide beneficiaries with an accurate or timely accounting of trust property
- Collusion to the detriment of any other beneficiary
It is essential to address trustee misconduct promptly. If left unaddressed, it can lead to substantial financial losses to the trust and to your inheritance.
“While trustee misconduct can be the result of negligence, malice, or just simple ignorance, the consequences are the same: you risk devaluing your inheritance. Working with an attorney is crucial if you suspect trustee misconduct because it is harder to resolve issues the longer the misconduct goes on. We can help with that.”
– Andrew Micaraset, Associate, Gokal Law Group
Related Article: When Do You Need a Trust Litigation Attorney in Orange County?
Do You Need Help Holding a Trustee Accountable for Trustee Misconduct? Contact Us Today.
If you need to hold a trustee accountable for misconduct, including breaching their fiduciary duty, the first thing you need to do is consult with an experienced attorney. Only an experienced trust litigation lawyer has the expertise, resources, and network to analyze the trust document and financial records to understand the best legal options available to you so that you can enforce your beneficiary rights.
Schedule a consultation today to safeguard your inheritance, preserve the integrity of your trust, and hold a trustee accountable for trustee misconduct. We’ve seen their tactics, we know the law, and we’ll protect your interests so you receive what you are entitled to.
Disclaimer:
The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice. Use of, and access to, this website or any of the links or resources contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship between the reader, user, or browser and Gokal Law Group, Inc. All information, content, and materials available on this site are for general informational purposes only. Information on this website may not constitute the most up-to-date legal or other information.
Readers of this website should contact an attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular legal matter. No reader, user, or browser of this site should act or refrain from acting on the basis of information on this site without first seeking legal advice from counsel in the relevant jurisdiction. Only your individual attorney can provide assurances that the information contained herein – and your interpretation of it – is applicable or appropriate to your particular situation.