Beneficiaries of a Revocable Lifetime Trust Have a Cause of Action Against the Trustee for Actions During the Settlor’s Lifetime

Under California law, so long as the person who has the power to revoke a trust is competent, that person has the rights afforded a beneficiary and the duties of the trustee are owed to that person.  In In re Estate of Giraldin, 290 P.3d 199 (Calif. 2012), a divided California Supreme Court held that both California statutes and the common law of trusts do not prevent the beneficiaries of a revocable trust from have standing to sue the trustee after the settlor’s death for violations of the trustee’s duties owed to the settlor while the settlor was alive.

Special thanks to William LaPiana (Professor of Law, New York Law School) for bringing this case to my attention.