Trust accounts / remaindermen / refusal

Trusts Discussion
1

Hi all.

My dad died and in his will left majority of the house share to me and my kids (states will). A tiny fraction of the house was owned by step mum. Will says life interest trust to her ref house, when she dies me and my kids get given the majority share .

Step mum tried to confuse me to wind up trust and take a chunk of the share, i refused. Stepmum then never spoke to me again.

Step mum remarried super quick, and sold the house and vanished . Now lives in even bigger house with new husband investing in it and will be on deeds.

Step mum is trustee and my aunt was , but aunt retired handing role of trustee to a solicitor.

Solicitor replied to me in September this year saying their role as trustee is about to begin.

I wrote 10th October asking for:
trust accounts / what the trust owns.
Confirmation of who all trustees are.
Terms of the trust (document or instrument).

No reply at all.

Wrote again 10th November requesting exact same.

No reply at all.

Its now 23rd December.

No replies.

Surely if he declines (do i have a right to see ? As stepmum was so misleading and untrustworthy i am concerned about shares ) does he have to say in writing why hes denying me ?

Or is his absolute silence a refusal and i will never see this information?

I am confused as to what to do next.

10th November i sent in writing recorded. I know his office has received it.

Do i write another letter asking why he wont respond ?

The solicitor is the 'head of wills and probate ’ of a firm.

Thank you

2

Hi Derek

I am afraid this is not a forum for lay people to receive detailed advice on a complicated situation. You really need to engage a solicitor to act for you. They will be able to review the relevant documents, ascertain who is entitled to what, and try and recover anything due to you/ the trustees of your interests. As there seems be a significant share of a house at stake I would have thought that was worth paying the fees for.

Good luck.

Sara

Sara Spencer | Trust Manager

www.trustandestate.co.uk

Sara Spencer Ltd, 8 Kingsway, Harrogate, HG1 5NQ

07952 651881 | 01423 524114

Sara.spencer@trustandestate.co.uk

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3

Echoing what Sara says but just to add that the terms of the trust will be in the Will. IF you do not have a copy you can obtain it here:
Search probate records for documents and wills (England and Wales) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) for £1.50.

4

Hi Derek,

Sorry to hear about the trouble you are facing.

I am not a solicitor but have been dealing with similar issues and have been researching trust and equity regulations at a university law library which gives me a smattering of knowledge. If any of the following is not right, I’m sure other members of the trust forum will offer corrections.

Here are a few pointers which you can confirm with a solicitor yourself if you intend to seek legal advice:

  1. Your father’s will and will trust instructions can tell you what your rights are in this case. If the life interest trust was made out to your stepmum and she was not included as an ultimate beneficiary in the trust terms, then she has no entitlement to your father’s house or any of his assets. A life interest tenant has no right to take possession of capital. She probably does have the right to sell up and buy a different house but the new house or part of it would be under trust for you when she dies.

  2. The behaviour of the replacement solicitor is out of order and you can ask the court of equity to order him to provide you with the information you seek, or he can be replaced.

  3. It does sound as though you will need to lodge a breach of trust claim at the Court of Equity and you would need representation by counsel to proceed.

  4. Make sure you talk to a solicitor who has experience in trusts and equity. Ask what cases he has dealt with. Don’t assume he knows what he is talking about. It is a complex field. If you want to read up on Trusts and Equity yourself, you could look at Estate and Trust Administration For Dummies 2nd Edition. Its comprehensive and user friendly. Although written for Americans, much of it is applicable to the UK.

You can sometimes get initial advice from a Legal Aid centre or Citizens Advice Bureau. They sometimes have a solicitor who could give you a general idea of your rights.

All the best,

Anna St Clair

PS If possible try to speak with the solicitor who drafted the will and trust for your father. He would probably be willing to advise you briefly in a short consultation and could also refer you to a suitable solicitor.

5

Derek
Anna has given you her best thoughts but it would be very unwise to look at advice that is any way reliant on a US law. One example - there is no court in the UK known as The Court of Equity.
I endorse the advice given by others that this is a complex situation. your rights depends on several factors including the terms of the trusts involved and you will benefit from professional advice.
A first step is to gather all relevant information and documents. As the solicitor is ignoring you, you should send a letter marked ‘complaint’ to the complaints partner at the firm, asking for a clear response to your previously ignored letters and requesting copies of all relevant documents. Explain that if you don’t receive a satisfactory response within 14 days you will complain to the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Your rights are limited, as are their duties to you, as you are not their client, but they should not ignore you.
Good luck

6

I think that you (not unreasonably) may be confusing the roles of executor and trustee. It sounds to me as if your Stepmother and aunt were executors of your father’s will. I do not see how your stepmother could have sold the house otherwise. The trustees of a will trust become entitled to act only when the executors “assent” to transfer the assets to them. I suspect that is why the solicitor says that he is only just about to take office as a trustee.

If that is right your stepmother has sold the house in breach of her duties as executor and you should sue her. However if she has disappeared that is likely to be a problem.

You definitely need to talk to a local solicitor (not the one that wrote the will or the new trustee) urgently and find out what action you can now take. Most people who disappear can actually be traced, but it needs a professional to do that.