If you are the beneficiary of a trust and the acting trustee is not fulfilling his or her fiduciary duties, you have a “renegade trustee” on your hands. This type of trustee is likely to refuse to provide you with a copy of the trust document or information regarding the trust assets. Renegade trustees do not communicate with the beneficiaries and, when they do, it is only to bully you into agreeing to what the trustee wants. The main concern with renegade trustees is that they can deplete the trust assets and when you challenge their actions, they threaten to spend more of it on costly attorneys. Renegade trustees believe they can act according to their own set of rules. So, what can you do to contain a renegade trustee? Below are five options:

  • We can seek to have the trustee suspended, either temporarily or permanently removed. A neutral third-party can be appointed to serve as the trustee until the issue has been decided by the court, or we can propose a new trustee to be appointed.
  • We can ask the court to block or freeze all of the trust accounts. This will help ensure the trust assets are not improperly depleted because the trustee will only have access to the trust funds after obtaining court approval.
  • We can request that the court require the trustee to post a bond. A bond protects the beneficiaries if the trustee improperly harms the trust assets. In other words, any damages caused by the illegal or improper conduct of the trustee will be paid by the bonding company.
  • We can have the court order the trustee to provide a trust accounting so we can determine whether or not the trustee is acting improperly.
  • We can assist you with recovering lost trust assets.

If you believe a trustee is acting inappropriately or that trust assets are in jeopardy, call The Legacy Lawyers for help today! It is important to take action against a renegade trustee as quickly as possible. We have helped many people in your situation. Just call to schedule your no-cost consultation: (714) 963-7543. The Legacy Lawyers are dedicated to your peace of mind.