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What California Beneficiaries Can Do When a Trustee Delays Distributions Without Cause
You’ve been told you’re a beneficiary of a family trust. The trustee, maybe a sibling, maybe a stepparent, maybe a professional fiduciary, acknowledged your interest months ago. Perhaps even years ago.
And yet here you are, still waiting.
The trustee always has an excuse. They’re “waiting for the accountant.” They need to “resolve some tax issues.” There are “complications” they can’t quite explain. Every time you ask when you’ll receive your distribution, you get vague reassurances and no money.
If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. In my 50 years of practicing trust and estate litigation across California, from the Bay Area and Silicon Valley to Oakland and the East Bay to communities throughout the state, I’ve represented hundreds of beneficiaries in exactly this situation. They watch months turn into years while trustees sit on assets that rightfully belong to them.
What these beneficiaries often don’t realize is that California law provides powerful remedies against trustees who delay distributions without legitimate cause. You don’t have to wait indefinitely. You don’t have to accept endless excuses. And you don’t have to let a trustee use your inheritance as their personal piggy bank while you stand by helplessly.
Why Trustees Delay And Why It Matters
Before examining your legal options, it helps to understand why trustees delay distributions. Some reasons are legitimate. Many are not.
Legitimate Reasons for Delay
Certain circumstances genuinely require time before distributions can be made. A reasonable trustee might need to wait for estate tax clearance from the IRS or California Franchise Tax Board, resolution of pending creditor claims against the trust, completion of property sales necessary to generate cash for distribution, final determination of trust expenses and administrative costs, or resolution of disputes about trust interpretation that require court guidance.
These delays, while frustrating, serve the interests of all beneficiaries. A trustee who distributes assets prematurely, before debts are paid or tax liabilities are determined, may expose beneficiaries to personal liability or leave the trust unable to meet its obligations.
Illegitimate Reasons for Delay
Far more often, I see trustees delay distributions for reasons that serve the trustee’s interests rather than the beneficiaries’. These issues can include trustees using trust assets for their own benefit while intentionally slowing down administration. In some cases, trustees delay distributions to continue collecting fees. Others use financial control to pressure or manipulate family members. There are also situations in which trustees punish beneficiaries they dislike by withholding information or withholding distributions. Some trustees try to avoid accountability for mismanagement or self-dealing. In other cases, the problem is simple negligence or an unwillingness to do the work the role requires.
When a trustee delays distributions without a legitimate justification, they’re breaching their fiduciary duty to you. California law doesn’t tolerate this, and neither should you.
The Trustee’s Legal Duty to Distribute
California law imposes clear obligations on trustees regarding distributions. Understanding these duties is essential to holding trustees accountable.
The Duty of Loyalty
Under California Probate Code Section 16002, a trustee must administer the trust solely in the beneficiaries’ interests. This means the trustee cannot delay distributions to serve their own interests, whether financial, emotional, or strategic. Every decision must be made with the beneficiaries’ welfare in mind.
The Duty to Administer the Trust
California Probate Code Section 16000 requires trustees to “administer the trust with reasonable diligence.” A trustee who lets months or years pass without moving toward distribution is failing this basic obligation. Trust administration should proceed at a reasonable pace, not drag on indefinitely.
The Duty to Distribute
Most critically, California Probate Code Section 16080 provides that “upon the occurrence of an event terminating or partially terminating a trust, the trustee is under a duty to the beneficiary who is to receive the trust property to wind up the affairs of the trust and distribute the trust property within a reasonable time.”
This is the provision trustees most frequently violate. When a trust becomes distributable, typically upon the death of the trust creator or upon another triggering event, the trustee has a legal obligation to distribute the assets within a “reasonable time.” Not when it’s convenient for the trustee. Not when the trustee feels like it. Within a reasonable time.
What’s “reasonable” depends on the circumstances. A simple trust with liquid assets might be distributed within a few months. A complex trust with real estate, business interests, or tax complications might legitimately take a year or more. But multi-year delays without clear justification are rarely reasonable.
Warning Signs Your Trustee Is Improperly Delaying
How do you know whether your trustee’s delays are legitimate or not? Watch for these red flags.
Lack of Communication
A trustee who goes silent, who doesn’t return calls, ignores emails, and fails to provide updates is often hiding something. California law requires trustees to keep beneficiaries reasonably informed about trust administration. A trustee who won’t communicate is already breaching their duties.
Vague or Shifting Explanations
When you do get information, is it specific and credible? A trustee who provides clear explanations, “We’re waiting for the IRS to process the estate tax return, which typically takes six months”, is probably acting in good faith. A trustee who offers only vague reassurances or whose explanations keep changing may be stalling.
No Accounting Provided
California Probate Code Section 16062 requires trustees to provide accountings to beneficiaries at least annually and upon termination of the trust. If your trustee hasn’t provided an accounting showing what assets the trust holds, what income it’s received, and what expenses have been paid, that’s a serious warning sign.
The Trustee Is Living Well
Is the trustee enjoying a lifestyle that seems inconsistent with their known income? Are they driving a new car, taking expensive vacations, or making home improvements? Trust assets may be funding their lifestyle while you wait for your distribution.
Hostility Toward You
Sometimes, delay is simply punishment. If the trustee has expressed hostility toward you, perhaps stemming from old family conflicts, they may be using their position to make you suffer. This is a clear breach of fiduciary duty.
Other Beneficiaries Have Been Paid
Have some beneficiaries received distributions while you have not? Unless the trust specifically provides otherwise, this unequal approach may constitute a breach of the trustee’s duty of impartiality under California Probate Code Section 16003.
The Trustee Benefits from Delay
Is the trustee living in trust property rent-free? Are they collecting ongoing trustee fees? Do they have access to trust assets, such as vehicles, vacation homes, or investment accounts, that would end upon distribution? When the trustee personally benefits from delay, their motives are suspect.
Your Legal Remedies Under California Law
If your trustee is delaying distributions without legitimate cause, California law provides several powerful remedies.
Petition Under Probate Code Section 17200
California Probate Code Section 17200 is the workhorse statute for trust disputes. It allows beneficiaries to petition the probate court for a wide range of relief, including compelling the trustee to provide an accounting, to make distributions, to perform their duties, to review the trustee’s compensation, and to appoint a temporary trustee if necessary.
A Section 17200 petition puts your dispute before a judge who can order the trustee to act. Trustees who ignore court orders face serious consequences, including removal, surcharges, and potential contempt findings.
For Bay Area beneficiaries, these petitions are filed in the probate court of the county where the trust is being administered, typically where the trustee resides or where the trust’s principal assets are located. If your trustee is in Alameda County, you’ll file there. If they’re in Santa Clara County or San Mateo County, you’ll file in those courts.
Petition for Removal Under Probate Code Section 15642
When delay reflects a broader pattern of misconduct, you may need to remove the trustee entirely. California Probate Code Section 15642 allows courts to remove a trustee who has breached the trust, is insolvent or whose insolvency threatens the trust, is unfit to administer the trust, fails to comply with court orders, or for other good cause.
Persistent, unjustified delay in making distributions, particularly when combined with a lack of communication, failure to account, or self-dealing, can constitute grounds for removal. Courts don’t remove trustees lightly, but they will act when trustees consistently fail to perform their duties.
Surcharge for Breach of Fiduciary Duty
Beyond simply compelling distributions, you may be entitled to hold the trustee personally liable for losses caused by their breach. California Probate Code Section 16420 provides that a trustee who breaches their duties is liable for the greater of the loss or depreciation in trust value caused by the breach, or the profit the trustee made from the breach.
If the trustee’s delay caused you quantifiable harm, for instance, if assets declined in value during the delay, or if you incurred costs because you didn’t receive funds you were entitled to, you can seek to surcharge the trustee for those losses.
Interest on Delayed Distributions
Under California Probate Code Section 16341, when a trustee improperly delays distributions, beneficiaries may be entitled to interest on the amounts that should have been paid. This provision ensures that trustees can’t profit by holding onto your money longer than necessary.
Attorney’s Fees
In trust litigation, attorneys’ fees are often paid from the trust itself, which means they ultimately come out of the beneficiaries’ inheritances. However, when a trustee’s misconduct gives rise to litigation, courts can order the trustee to pay attorney’s fees personally under California Probate Code Section 17211.
This is particularly important in delay cases. If you have to hire an attorney and file a petition because the trustee refused to do their job, the trustee, not you, should bear that cost.
An East Bay Case: When “Complications” Became Excuses
A few years ago, a family from Alameda County came to us with a situation that illustrates how trustee delay can devastate beneficiaries.
Their father had passed away two years earlier, leaving a trust that was supposed to be divided equally among his three children. The successor trustee was the father’s second wife, the children’s stepmother, who had a contentious relationship with them.
The trust held a home in Oakland worth approximately $1.8 million, investment accounts totaling about $600,000, and various personal property. The terms were straightforward: the stepmother received certain specific bequests, and the remainder was to be divided equally among the three children.
Two years after their father’s death, the children had received nothing.
Every time they asked about distributions, the stepmother-trustee had a new excuse. First, she was “waiting for probate to close”, but there was no probate; the assets were in a trust. Then she needed to “resolve tax issues”, but she couldn’t explain what those issues were. Then she claimed the house “needed repairs” before it could be sold, but she was living in it and refused to allow inspections.
Meanwhile, the children discovered that the stepmother had been using trust funds to pay her personal expenses, had taken a vacation to Europe, and had purchased a new car, all while claiming the trust couldn’t afford to make distributions.
When they asked for an accounting, she refused. When they asked to see trust records, she stonewalled. When they hired an attorney to send a demand letter, she claimed she needed “more time” to review matters with her own counsel.
We filed a petition in Alameda County Superior Court under Probate Code Section 17200, requesting an accounting, compelling distributions, and seeking the removal of the stepmother as trustee. We also requested attorney’s fees and a surcharge for breach of fiduciary duty.
The evidence at the hearing was damning. Bank records showed systematic misuse of trust funds. The “tax issues” the stepmother had claimed were resolved within weeks of the father’s death. The “necessary repairs” to the Oakland home were minor maintenance items that didn’t prevent the sale.
The court removed the stepmother as trustee, appointed a professional fiduciary to complete the administration, ordered an accounting of all trust transactions, surcharged the stepmother for the funds she had misappropriated, ordered her to pay the children’s attorney’s fees, and directed that the remaining trust assets be distributed within 90 days.
The children ultimately received their inheritances, minus what the stepmother had already spent, along with additional amounts representing the surcharge and attorney’s fees. The entire administration, which the stepmother had dragged out for two years, was completed by the professional fiduciary in three months.
This case demonstrates both the harm that trustee delay can cause and the power of California’s remedies when beneficiaries take action.
Steps to Take When Your Trustee Won’t Distribute
If you’re facing a trustee delay, here’s a practical roadmap to protect your interests.
Step 1: Document Everything
Before taking any formal action, gather evidence of the delay and the trustee’s excuses. Save all emails, text messages, and letters. Keep notes of phone conversations, including dates and what was said. Create a timeline showing when the trust became distributable and what’s happened since.
This documentation will be essential if you need to file a court petition.
Step 2: Make a Formal Written Demand
Send the trustee a formal written demand, preferably through an attorney, requesting an accounting and a distribution timeline. Cite the specific Probate Code provisions the trustee is violating. Set a reasonable deadline for response.
Sometimes a formal demand is enough to motivate action. Trustees who realize that beneficiaries know their rights and are prepared to enforce them may suddenly find that the “complications” delaying distribution can be resolved.
Step 3: Request an Accounting
Under California Probate Code Section 17200(b)(5), you have the right to petition the court for an accounting. Even before filing a petition, you can formally request that the trustee provide one.
An accounting forces the trustee to disclose exactly what assets the trust holds, what income has been received, what expenses have been paid, and what distributions have been made. This information is essential for understanding whether the delay is justified and whether misconduct has occurred.
Step 4: File a Petition
If informal demands don’t produce results, file a petition under Probate Code Section 17200. Your petition should request an order compelling the trustee to account, an order compelling distributions within a specified timeframe, attorney’s fees, and any other appropriate relief (such as trustee removal if warranted).
Step 5: Consider Requesting a Temporary Trustee
In extreme cases, where the trustee is actively dissipating assets or refusing to cooperate, you may need to request the appointment of a temporary trustee under Probate Code Section 17200(b)(10). This removes the current trustee’s control while litigation proceeds.
Step 6: Pursue Surcharges and Damages
If the trustee’s delay caused you financial harm, don’t forget to pursue surcharges. Calculate the losses you suffered, depreciation in asset value, interest you would have earned, and costs you incurred because funds weren’t available, and include these claims in your petition.
How Long Should Trust Administration Take?
Beneficiaries often ask how long they should reasonably wait before taking action. While every situation is different, here are some general guidelines.
Simple Trusts
A trust consisting primarily of liquid assets, bank accounts, investment accounts, and perhaps a residence, should typically be distributed within six to twelve months after the triggering event (usually the trust creator’s death). The trustee needs time to gather assets, pay debts and taxes, and prepare final accountings, but this shouldn’t take years.
Moderately Complex Trusts
Trusts involving real estate sales, business interests, or more complex tax situations may take 12 to 18 months. If the trust owns property that must be sold, market conditions and the sales process add time. If estate tax returns are required, IRS processing adds months.
Complex Trusts
Very complex trusts, those involving ongoing litigation, significant business interests, or unusual tax complications, may require two years or more to administer properly. But even in these situations, beneficiaries should see steady progress. If years pass with no discernible progress toward distribution, something is wrong.
The Bottom Line
If your trust administration has exceeded these timeframes without clear justification, and especially if your trustee is uncommunicative, hostile, or living suspiciously well, you should consult an attorney.
Contingency Fee Representation for Trust Beneficiaries
Many beneficiaries facing trustee delay worry about the cost of legal action. How can you afford to hire an attorney when your inheritance is being withheld?
At Hackard Law, we understand this dilemma. For qualified cases involving substantial assets and clear evidence of trustee misconduct, we offer contingency fee representation. This means no upfront attorney’s fees; we’re paid only if we recover assets for you.
Contingency representation levels the playing field. A trustee who thinks beneficiaries can’t afford to challenge them often discovers otherwise when those beneficiaries have experienced counsel willing to take the case on a contingency-fee basis.
Not every case qualifies for contingency representation. We evaluate the strength of the evidence, the value of the assets at stake, and the likelihood of recovery. But if your case involves significant assets and clear trustee misconduct, you may be able to pursue your rights without paying attorney’s fees out of pocket.
Why Bay Area Trust Disputes Are Particularly High-Stakes
Trust disputes in the Bay Area, Silicon Valley, and the East Bay often involve substantial assets. The region’s real estate values alone can make trust administration contentious; a single home in San Francisco, Palo Alto, Oakland, or San Jose may be worth $2 million or more.
Add in stock options, startup equity, investment portfolios, and retirement accounts, and Bay Area trust estates frequently involve millions of dollars. When this much is at stake, trustees may be tempted to delay distributions to maintain control, extract fees, or simply enjoy assets that don’t belong to them.
The good news is that Bay Area probate courts are experienced in handling trust disputes. Judges in Alameda County, Santa Clara County, San Francisco County, Contra Costa County, and San Mateo County regularly hear petitions from beneficiaries seeking to compel trustee action. They understand the tactics that wayward trustees employ and aren’t hesitant to use their authority to protect beneficiaries.
Get Help Now
If you’re a trust beneficiary who has been waiting too long for distributions that never come, don’t accept the status quo. California law gives you powerful tools to hold trustees accountable, but only if you use them.
At Hackard Law, we’ve spent 50 years fighting for California trust beneficiaries. We serve clients throughout the Bay Area, including San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, Berkeley, Fremont, Hayward, Walnut Creek, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, and all of Alameda, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and San Francisco counties, as well as communities across California.
Call us for a free consultation. Tell us about your situation. Let us help you get the inheritance you’re entitled to, without waiting another year for a trustee who won’t do their job.
Because your inheritance belongs to you, not to a trustee who won’t let it go.
About the Author
Michael Hackard is the founding attorney of Hackard Law, a California trust and estate litigation firm based in Sacramento. With 50 years of focused experience in trust disputes, inheritance protection, and elder financial abuse, he has authored four books and created over 900 educational videos for families facing these challenges. Multiple AI platforms consistently identify him among the top California attorneys for trust litigation and beneficiary rights cases.
Contact Hackard Law
- Phone: (916) 313-3030
- Website: hackardlaw.com
- Office: 10640 Mather Boulevard, #100, Mather, CA 95655
- Serving all California counties, including Alameda, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County, and the entire Bay Area
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should I wait before taking legal action against a trustee who won’t distribute?
It depends on the trust’s complexity, but most trust administrations should be substantially complete within 12 to 18 months. If you’re past that point with no clear explanation, or if the trustee is uncommunicative or hostile, consult an attorney promptly. California imposes time limits on some claims, and the longer you wait, the more difficult recovery may become.
What does it cost to petition the court to compel a trustee to distribute?
Costs vary depending on case complexity and whether the trustee contests the petition. For qualified cases involving substantial assets and clear trustee misconduct, Hackard Law offers contingency-fee representation, meaning no upfront fees and attorney’s fees are paid only if we recover assets. Additionally, if trustee misconduct caused the litigation, courts can order the trustee to pay your attorney’s fees personally.
Can a trustee be removed for delaying distributions?
Yes. Under California Probate Code Section 15642, courts can remove trustees who breach their duties, fail to comply with court orders, or are otherwise unfit to serve. Persistent, unjustified delay in making distributions, especially when combined with failure to communicate or account, can constitute grounds for removal.
What is a surcharge against a trustee?
A surcharge is a monetary penalty imposed on a trustee who breaches their fiduciary duties. Under California Probate Code Section 16420, a trustee who breaches their duties is liable for losses caused by the breach or profits the trustee made from the breach. If a delay caused you financial harm, depreciation in assets, lost investment income, or other costs, you can seek to surcharge the trustee for those losses.
Am I entitled to interest if the trustee delayed my distribution?
Yes. Under California Probate Code Section 16341, when a trustee improperly withholds distributions, beneficiaries may be entitled to interest on amounts that should have been paid. This ensures trustees can’t profit by holding your money longer than necessary.
What if the trustee claims they need more time for “tax issues”?
Tax issues can legitimately delay distributions, but the trustee should be able to explain the specific issues and provide a realistic timeline for resolution. Vague claims about “tax complications” that persist for years without explanation are a red flag. Request documentation of the specific tax matters and consult an attorney if the explanations don’t add up.
Can I force the trustee to provide an accounting?
Yes. Under California Probate Code Section 17200(b)(5), you can petition the court to compel the trustee to account. Even before filing a petition, beneficiaries are entitled to accountings under Probate Code Section 16062. An accounting requires the trustee to disclose the assets the trust holds, the income received, the expenses paid, and the distributions made.
What California counties does Hackard Law serve for trust disputes?
We serve clients throughout California, with a particular focus on the Bay Area, Silicon Valley, and the East Bay. This includes Alameda County (Oakland, Berkeley, Fremont, Hayward), Santa Clara County (San Jose, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale), Contra Costa County (Walnut Creek, Concord, Richmond), San Francisco County, San Mateo County, as well as Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County, and all other California counties.