Administration of Revocable Trust After Death by California Law
- California law requires a trustee to issue written notice of administration upon a settler's death. Beneficiaries are granted 120 days from the date of receipt to contest the trust in probate court. Beneficiaries must visit the probate court where the trust is recorded to file a petition. If a beneficiary suspects fraud, he can petition the court to defer a trustee's power until the claims made against that person are proven false. California law requires a claimant to provide written notification of the court hearing to the parties involved in the trust.
- Adminstering a trust includes identifying and collecting trust property. The trustee can hire a private asset search firm to recover undisclosed or missing trust property. California law permits a trustee to search a settler's home for trust account statements, insurance policies, dividend checks, income tax returns and other trust documents.
- To guard against theft, loss or damage, a trustee is permitted to remove personal property from a trust grantor's home and shelter it in a safe or a storage facility. In California, a trustee may be held liable for loss, theft or destroyed trust property.
- A trust is a tax-paying entity required to file state and federal income tax returns. California law requires trustees to maintain a permanent record of all trust tax returns by date. The trustee must also categorize receipts and itemize profit and loss statements for every year the trust is in existence.
- While trust property remains under the charge of a trustee, she must make every effort to increase the trust's earning potential. This may include setting up interest-bearing trust accounts at local banks, mortgaging investment properties and selling stocks and bonds. Trust property should only be distributed with a focus on minimizing taxes for the beneficiary of the trust grantor.
Written Notice
Recovery of Trust Property
Liability for Trust Property
Tax Returns
Distribution of Property
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