My question involves estate proceedings in the state of: New York
My father & step-mother purchased their home in 1997 but, due to financial issues my father faced, the house & mortgage were only in the name of my step-mother.
Even so, the "understanding" was that the house was jointly owned by them, they would live in it until they died, then the house would be sold and split evenly between my step-brother & myself. My fathers pension & social security was the primary income & used to pay the housing expenses.
In 2006, the _____ Premises Trust, an Irrevocable Inter Vivos Trust, was created. The document listed that my father & step-mother could live in the property until they died & transferred the property via a "Quitclaim" Deed (subject to the Life Estates of my father & step-mother) from my step-mother to my step-brother as the Trustee. This was done at the suggestion of my father so the property could be "protected" from medical expense/Medicare/Medicaid claims in the future. It was also done to clarify how the property would be sold once they passed away and that the property would be split evenly between my step-brother & myself. With this understanding, my fathers pension & social security were continued to be used as the primary income to pay the housing expenses.
My father was never given a copy of the Trust documents by the Trustee to review, even though it set out the terms of his Life Estate. I was never given a copy of the Trust documents by the Trustee to review, even though I am a Remaindermen Beneficiary and entitled to 50% of the net proceeds of the Trust.
My father told me several times over the years that he had "protected my interests" and that a Trust was set up where the house would be sold & my step-brother & I would split the house 50-50. I only found out the property was in the name of my step-brother as Trustee and not the Trust in 2014 & my father passed away in 2016.
Last week, I get a call from my step-mother telling me she was "selling" the house... I meet with them, they tell me they've put the house on the market, found a buyer & gone to contract... I ask to see a copy of the Trust and they don't have one to show me. Later in the week, they "get a copy" from the lawyer and fax it to me.
When I review it, I see that when the Trust was created, my step-mother has reserved a Limited Power of Appointment to change or alter the remaindermen. As this means she can remove me from the Trust at anytime, it is my belief that she intentionally kept this information from my father. I believe she did this so he would keep paying towards the upkeep of the house as he would have demanded that this section be removed to guarantee & preserve my rights to benefit from the property. I also believe that the Trustee, who stands to double his inheritance if I am removed, intentionally did not provide my father or myself with a copy of the Trust knowing that we would have both immediately contested it.
My questions are:
1) Can I make a claim that fraud was committed by my step-mother against my father as she misrepresented the details of the Trust (she induced him to continue making financial payments without telling him I could be removed as a Beneficiary)?
2) Can I make a claim against the Trustee as he failed to provide copies of the Trust to my father (because he stood to financially gain from the ability to remove me from the Trust)?
3) Can I make a claim against the Trustee failed to provide copies of the Trust to me as a Beneficiary and intentionally misled me (because he stood to double his inheritance because I could be removed from the Trust & because we talked several times about how the house would eventually be split between us)?
Thank you in advance for any responses that are received.
My father & step-mother purchased their home in 1997 but, due to financial issues my father faced, the house & mortgage were only in the name of my step-mother.
Even so, the "understanding" was that the house was jointly owned by them, they would live in it until they died, then the house would be sold and split evenly between my step-brother & myself. My fathers pension & social security was the primary income & used to pay the housing expenses.
In 2006, the _____ Premises Trust, an Irrevocable Inter Vivos Trust, was created. The document listed that my father & step-mother could live in the property until they died & transferred the property via a "Quitclaim" Deed (subject to the Life Estates of my father & step-mother) from my step-mother to my step-brother as the Trustee. This was done at the suggestion of my father so the property could be "protected" from medical expense/Medicare/Medicaid claims in the future. It was also done to clarify how the property would be sold once they passed away and that the property would be split evenly between my step-brother & myself. With this understanding, my fathers pension & social security were continued to be used as the primary income to pay the housing expenses.
My father was never given a copy of the Trust documents by the Trustee to review, even though it set out the terms of his Life Estate. I was never given a copy of the Trust documents by the Trustee to review, even though I am a Remaindermen Beneficiary and entitled to 50% of the net proceeds of the Trust.
My father told me several times over the years that he had "protected my interests" and that a Trust was set up where the house would be sold & my step-brother & I would split the house 50-50. I only found out the property was in the name of my step-brother as Trustee and not the Trust in 2014 & my father passed away in 2016.
Last week, I get a call from my step-mother telling me she was "selling" the house... I meet with them, they tell me they've put the house on the market, found a buyer & gone to contract... I ask to see a copy of the Trust and they don't have one to show me. Later in the week, they "get a copy" from the lawyer and fax it to me.
When I review it, I see that when the Trust was created, my step-mother has reserved a Limited Power of Appointment to change or alter the remaindermen. As this means she can remove me from the Trust at anytime, it is my belief that she intentionally kept this information from my father. I believe she did this so he would keep paying towards the upkeep of the house as he would have demanded that this section be removed to guarantee & preserve my rights to benefit from the property. I also believe that the Trustee, who stands to double his inheritance if I am removed, intentionally did not provide my father or myself with a copy of the Trust knowing that we would have both immediately contested it.
My questions are:
1) Can I make a claim that fraud was committed by my step-mother against my father as she misrepresented the details of the Trust (she induced him to continue making financial payments without telling him I could be removed as a Beneficiary)?
2) Can I make a claim against the Trustee as he failed to provide copies of the Trust to my father (because he stood to financially gain from the ability to remove me from the Trust)?
3) Can I make a claim against the Trustee failed to provide copies of the Trust to me as a Beneficiary and intentionally misled me (because he stood to double his inheritance because I could be removed from the Trust & because we talked several times about how the house would eventually be split between us)?
Thank you in advance for any responses that are received.
Trusts: Irrevocable Trust, Life Estates and Trustee Failure to Notify in New York
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