El texto completo de esta guía está en inglés; el resumen anterior está en su idioma. Los resúmenes de las leyes y el inglés siguen siendo la fuente de referencia.
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Impartial, not neutral about the duties
§16003 has a trustee of a trust with two or more beneficiaries deal with them impartially and invest and manage the property taking their differing interests into account. Impartiality is not passivity: it is applying the instrument's terms evenly, whatever the trustee's own relationships with the family.
Information is the first tool. Keeping every beneficiary reasonably informed (§16060), answering reasonable requests (§16061) and providing the terms on request (§§16060.7, 16061.5) narrows most disputes to the questions that are actually in dispute.
The contest period after a death
After a settlor's death, each recipient of the notification by trustee has a limited time to contest the trust: 120 days after service, or 60 days after a copy of the terms is delivered during that period, whichever is later (§16061.8). The trustee may weigh the fact that the period has not expired in deciding the timing and nature of distributions (§16061.9(c)).
Notice of proposed action
For a matter within its powers, a trustee may give the beneficiaries a notice of proposed action that describes the action and the reasons for it and allows at least 45 days to object (§§16500, 16502). If no beneficiary entitled to the notice objects in writing within the period, the trustee is not liable for the action, with the exceptions §16503 states for a minor or an incompetent adult; an objection lets the trustee or a beneficiary ask the court to decide (§16503). The procedure is optional (§16504).
The court's route
When the lane is not enough, §17200 lets a trustee or beneficiary petition the court concerning the internal affairs of the trust — among the listed proceedings, to determine questions of construction, to settle accounts, to instruct the trustee, to compel the trustee to report information or account, and to appoint or remove a trustee. Whether and when to petition is a decision many trustees and beneficiaries make with a licensed California attorney of their choosing.
Las leyes, textualmente
Duty to deal impartially with beneficiaries
Prob. Code §16003 ↗Explicación clara y sencilla; el texto literal del estatuto aún no está atestiguado en nuestra biblioteca. Consulte el estatuto oficial en el enlace de arriba.
Time to contest a trust after the notification
Prob. Code §16061.8 ↗Explicación clara y sencilla; el texto literal del estatuto aún no está atestiguado en nuestra biblioteca. Consulte el estatuto oficial en el enlace de arriba.
Contents of a notice of proposed action
Prob. Code §16502 ↗Explicación clara y sencilla; el texto literal del estatuto aún no está atestiguado en nuestra biblioteca. Consulte el estatuto oficial en el enlace de arriba.
Petitions concerning a trust's internal affairs
Prob. Code §17200 ↗Explicación clara y sencilla; el texto literal del estatuto aún no está atestiguado en nuestra biblioteca. Consulte el estatuto oficial en el enlace de arriba.
Preguntas frecuentes
Does the trustee have to take sides?
No. §16003 has the trustee deal with the beneficiaries impartially, applying the instrument's terms evenly and taking their differing interests into account.
How long do beneficiaries have to contest a California trust?
After the notification by trustee following a settlor's death: 120 days after service, or 60 days after the terms are delivered during that period, whichever is later (§16061.8).
Can a trustee get beneficiaries' agreement before acting?
The trustee may give a notice of proposed action with at least 45 days to object (§§16500, 16502); without a timely written objection the trustee is not liable for the action, with the stated exceptions, and an objection opens the court's route (§16503).
Lecturas relacionadas
El Centro de Aprendizaje es información general sobre la ley de California — no es asesoría legal ni sustituye el consejo de un abogado de California con licencia sobre sus hechos específicos. TrusteeClear es software, no un bufete.