In California, a trustee has a significant amount of control over the trust administration process.
The trustee has the power to gather the assets of the trust, work with creditors, and distribute the trust assets to the beneficiaries. The trustee also owes the beneficiaries of the trust (and the trust itself) a fiduciary duty to act in their best interests at all times. Unfortunately, this does not always happen, and trustees sometimes breach their duties to beneficiaries to the extent that it justifies their removal.
The trust and estate litigation attorneys of Hackard Law are committed to helping to protect the rights of trust beneficiaries and understand how to remove problem trustees quickly and efficiently. To discuss your case with one of our lawyers, send us an email through our online contact form or call our office at 916-313-3030.
The Duties of a California Trustee
As mentioned above, trustees owe trust beneficiaries a fiduciary duty, which can consist of several specific tasks. These include the duty of loyalty, the duty to act with ordinary care with regard to trust assets, the duty to act impartially with regard to trust beneficiaries, the duty to collect trust assets, and the duty to administer the trust according to its terms. If a trustee breaches these or any other of the duties imposed by the trust, common law, or the California Probate Code, the beneficiaries may have grounds to remove the trustee. A trustee may breach those duties through:- Colluding with one or some beneficiaries to the detriment of others
- Engaging in self-dealing
- Commingling personal assets with trust assets
- Negligent management of trust assets
- Misappropriating trust assets
- Failing to administer a trust by its terms
The Process of Removing a Trustee
If a trust is revocable, the settlor (the person who created the trust) may simply revoke the trust or amend the trust documents to install a new trustee. Things become more complicated, however, when a trust is irrevocable—which is automatically the case when the settlor is no longer alive or the trust deed indicates irrevocable status. To remove the trustee of an irrevocable trust, a court must get involved. To start the process, a party with an interest in the trust (like a beneficiary or a co-trustee) must file a petition with the appropriate court requesting that the court remove the trustee. The court will likely hold a hearing to examine the evidence supporting the petition’s request and afford the trustee an opportunity to respond to the issues raised in the petition.
If the court finds sufficient evidence to remove the trustee, it will do so and appoint a successor trustee. In some cases, the trust documents may identify this successor trustee, while in others, the court may appoint a suitable trustee, such as an attorney.