Re: Trust - Trustee deducted personal loan from lump sum agreement autonomously

It depends on what the trust documents and your agreement for the lump sum provides. It also depends on whether there was a loan, whether he waived his rights on it, etc. It might be possible to assert that the failure to disburse the $60,000 as agreed constitutes breach of the agreement for the lump sum, but again it depends on all the facts. If this is in AZ, then contact a contract or trust attorney in your area; if this is southern California, feel free to contact me.

Re: Trust - Trustee deducted personal loan from lump sum agreement autonomously

You have a couple of options:

1. demand payment of the additional $1500, unless it was specifically named in the lump sum agreement. There may be some additional considerations if the loan (if true) was in writing or discussed at the time of the lump sum agreement.

2. consider the lump sum agreement breached and demand the balance of the estate left to you. This is a more expensive course of action, but probably obtainable. Because it is unlikely that the agreement mentioned him taking out any monies for other agreements, he would have had to deliver the entire amount to you and then demand the payment be made by you back to him. Effectively, he is in breach of the agreement and it is now voidable.

3. Let an attorney review the agreement and see how iron-clad it really is.

If you would like to discuss this matter further in a more private forum, please feel free to contact me directly at the email address provided by LawGuru or through our firm’s website located at PasadenaEstatePlanning.com

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