Trust Litigation

Trust Litigation Assistance in Southern California

Trusts can be an essential estate planning tool for successful entrepreneurs and other wealthy individuals. Because money and other significant assets are often involved, disputes can arise that require litigation. The Law Offices of George B. Piggott provides quality legal representation in a variety of trust litigation matters, including trust mismanagement, breach of fiduciary duty and contests to the validity of trusts.

Trust litigation can be highly complex and requires an experienced, knowledgeable trust litigation attorney who can fully protect your rights. Mr. Piggott offers strategic advocacy to individuals and businesses acting as trustees and named as beneficiaries.

What is a trust?

A trust holds assets for the benefit of another individual or entity. Living trusts and testamentary trusts vary as to when they become effective — during the creator’s lifetime or after the creator’s death. Trusts involve these basic components:

• Creation of a trust by a grantor, also called a donor, settlor or trustor. Usually, this is done with a legal document such as a trust agreement or a declaration of trust for living trusts, or a last will and testament for testamentary trusts.
• Agreement of the trustee to hold the assets (money and/or property) for the benefit of someone else. There can be multiple trustees, and the trustee can be a person or a corporation with trust powers, such as a bank.
• The principal of the trust is held and managed by the trustee. The principal of the trust changes as it is spent, invested or appreciates and depreciates in value. Collectively, all of this money and property comprises the trust fund.
• A beneficiary is named to benefit from the trust. There can be multiple beneficiaries.

Strategic advocacy for beneficiaries and trustees

Litigation of trust issues can be very complicated. Many beneficiaries are unaware of their rights or how to secure them. Some trustees are unaware of the full scope of their responsibilities and that they can be held personally responsible for improperly handling a trust. The Law Offices of George B. Piggott handles a diverse range of actions for beneficiaries and trustees alike, including:

• Beneficiary claims
• Defense of trustees
• Contests to the validity of trusts on such grounds as fraud, duress, undue influence, coercion, lack of mental capacity and proper trust formation
• Trustee failure related to annual accounting and reporting
• Breach of a fiduciary duty, including trustee failure to correctly determine the value of assets
• Trust misappropriation and mismanagement, including the failure to pay beneficiaries or payment to the wrong beneficiaries
• Creditor claims

We protect the rights and interests of beneficiaries against negligent trustees and creditor claims. We represent individual and corporate trustees in complex trust-related disputes, such as allegations of mismanagement and breach of fiduciary duty.

Schedule an appointment with a knowledgeable trust litigation attorney in Orange County today

Whether you are a beneficiary of a mismanaged trust or a trustee accused of mishandling a trust, call the Law Offices of George B. Piggott at 855.300.3917 or contact us online to schedule an appointment. Our office, centrally located in Irvine just off the San Diego freeway, is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with weekend and evening appointments available on request. We serve clients throughout Orange County and the surrounding area, including Los Angeles, Riverside and San Diego counties.