One child out of five was named trustee of the estate and living trust. One parent is still living. He is not of sound mind. The trustee will not hand over copies of the living will or any documents of estates, money markets, trusts, etc. While the parents were both living and of sound mind, they told all the children the estates and moneys left will be split equally. There is no paper proof because the child named trustee will not forfeit the copies to anyone and tells the other siblings that if they fight her, they will not receive anything. How can we get her (trustee) to surrender information without seeking legal advice (no money for lawyer) We know, but don't have proof, she has taken advantage of this trust and neglected the living parent which she was left in charge to "take care of" Please any thoughts or questions on this will be appreciated

Hello mom:

The only way to get "proof", and/or to protect your rights and interests, is to hire a lawyer. If the four of you have the same interest, you could ALL hire the same lawyer.

excon

You need a copy of the trust document to determine your participation and rights under the trust. If the trustee refuses to provide that document, the only way you will get it is through legal action.

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Originally Posted by midwestmom

One child out of five was named trustee of the estate and living trust. One parent is still living. He is not of sound mind. The trustee will not hand over copies of the living will or any documents of estates, money markets, trusts, etc. While the parents were both living and of sound mind, they told all the children the estates and moneys left will be split equally. There is no paper proof because the child named trustee will not forfeit the copies to anyone and tells the other siblings that if they fight her, they will not receive anything. How can we get her (trustee) to surrender information without seeking legal advice (no money for lawyer) We know, but don't have proof, she has taken advantage of this trust and neglected the living parent which she was left in charge to "take care of" Please any thoughts or questions on this will be appreciated

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In many jurisdictions the living trust must be filed with the Court or, minimally, the Attorney and/or financial advisor has a copy.

Have you tried this route?

If this fails I see no choice but to retain an Attorney - otherwise it's your word against hers.

And, obviously, if a parent is being neglected and/or abused it has to be reported to Senior Protection in your area.

The other posts are correct. I would recommend the four of you going together to get a lawyer because things like this get ugly fast and the only way to get the documents needed if the trustee refuses is with your own lawyer. As said if the parent surviving is being neglected it needs reported asap you don't need the trust to do that.