In California trust disputes, information is often the first battleground. Before you can decide whether to challenge a trustee, seek removal, or negotiate a settlement, you generally need to know what is in the trust, what has been done with the assets, and who has been paid. That is why the law gives beneficiaries specific rights to accountings and records, and why trustees who stonewall on information often find themselves in serious trouble.
The Basic Duty To Inform And Account
California’s starting point is simple: trustees must keep beneficiaries reasonably informed about the trust and its administration. Probate Code section 16060 codifies that general duty. It does not spell out every detail, but it makes clear that beneficiaries are not supposed to be kept in the dark.
Other sections add structure. Probate Code section 16062 requires trustees, with some exceptions, to provide periodic accountings. In most irrevocable trusts, that means at least once a year, at the termination of the trust, and when a trustee changes. Section 16063 describes what those accountings must include, such as assets on hand, receipts and disbursements, gains and losses, and trustee compensation.
In addition, Probate Code section 16061 requires a trustee, on request, to provide information to a beneficiary about the administration of the trust. That has been interpreted to cover a wide range of documents and details, not only formal accountings. Even when annual accountings are waived in the document, courts retain power to order an accounting if necessary to protect beneficiaries.
In short, for current beneficiaries, California law expects trustees to provide both regular accountings and responsive records.
Who Is A “Beneficiary” For Information Purpose?
Most statutes use the word “beneficiary” without long definitions. In practice, courts distinguish between:
- current or “present” beneficiaries, who are entitled to or may receive distributions now
- future or remainder beneficiaries, who will receive property after certain events
Current beneficiaries almost always have a right to accountings. Remainder beneficiaries may have information rights as well, especially if a trustee’s decisions may affect the value of what they will eventually receive. The Probate Code provisions on accountings and information do not limit rights to income beneficiaries alone.
Historically, trustees and some courts took a narrow view of who was entitled to information. If a later amendment purported to disinherit someone, trustees would argue that the excluded person was no longer a beneficiary and had no right to accountings or records, even if that person claimed the amendment was invalid. The only way to see anything, in that view, was to somehow file a lawsuit without knowing what assets existed or how they had been handled.
As we discuss below, this approach may become harder to justify after recent decisions like Barefoot v. Jennings and Hamlin v. Jendayi, where the courts recognized the standing of “putative beneficiaries” to challenge suspect trusts and amendments – and perhaps, going still further, to demand information sufficient to protect and assert their rights concerning the trust assets.
Barefoot V. Jennings: “Once A Beneficiary, Always A Beneficiary” For Standing
In Barefoot v. Jennings, the California Supreme Court considered whether a daughter who had been written out of her mother’s trust by later amendments could file a trust contest in probate court. Earlier, the Court of Appeal had said no, reasoning that only current trustees and named beneficiaries had standing under Probate Code section 17200.
The Supreme Court reversed. It held that a person who would be a beneficiary if challenged amendments are invalid has standing to petition under section 17200. In other words, you do not lose the right to challenge a trust or amendment simply because the very document you are attacking says you are no longer a beneficiary.
Commentators have described the principle this way: for standing purposes, once a beneficiary, always a beneficiary. The Court’s focus was on who can bring a petition, not on accounting rights, but the logic carries beyond standing. If the law recognizes you as a “putative beneficiary” with a real stake in the outcome, it is hard to argue that you should be treated as a complete outsider when you ask for records that bear directly on your claim.
Hamlin V. Jendayi: Heirs As Putative Beneficiaries
Hamlin v. Jendayi pushed this line of reasoning another step. There, two sisters were cut out of their sibling’s estate by a trust that left everything to a non-family member. They petitioned to invalidate the trust on grounds including undue influence and lack of capacity.
The Court of Appeal held that intestate heirs have standing under Probate Code section 17200 to challenge a trust, even if they are not named in it, because they would benefit if the trust is invalidated and the estate passes by intestacy. The court rejected the argument that only current trustees and beneficiaries can bring such petitions.
Together, Barefoot and Hamlin create a broad class of “putative beneficiaries.” These include former beneficiaries eliminated by suspect amendments and heirs who were never included but claim the trust itself is invalid. The appellate courts have made clear that such people belong in probate court when they raise serious challenges.
Neither case squarely says that putative beneficiaries are entitled to accountings or full sets of records. But once courts acknowledge their stake, it becomes much more difficult to defend a trustee’s refusal to provide basic information about assets and administration.
A Broad View Of Information Rights In Pleadings
In our practice, we treat former and excluded beneficiaries as more than spectators. When someone would clearly inherit if a challenged amendment or trust fails, we argue they should be treated as beneficiaries for purposes of information and accountings, at least to the extent needed to litigate their claims.
That means our petitions may combine several requests:
- a challenge to the validity of the trust or amendment under Probate Code section 17200
- a request for instructions or orders compelling the trustee to provide accountings and records under Probate Code sections 16060 through 16063, and Probate Code sections 17200(b)(7)(A), (B), and (C)
- alternative discovery and document requests if the court hesitates to order a formal accounting at an early stage.
Discovery As A Backstop For Records
Even when a court is cautious about ordering a full accounting for a putative beneficiary, standard civil discovery tools are available once a petition is filed. Parties can serve document requests on the trustee, subpoena banks and brokers, and depose the trustee and professionals involved in administration.
That discovery often yields much of the same information a formal accounting would provide, including: bank statements and transaction histories, closing statements from real estate sales, invoices and receipts for major expenses, and correspondence with advisors.
In sum, the trustee’s duty to keep beneficiaries “reasonably informed” under section 16060 supports orders compelling production, even if the court wants to leave a full statutory accounting for later.
What Happens When A Trustee Refuses To Account
For current beneficiaries, the consequences of refusing to provide accountings can be severe. The probate court can order the trustee to account by a certain date, and if the trustee does not comply, the court can impose sanctions, suspend powers, or remove the trustee altogether. Persistent failure to account is often treated as a breach of fiduciary duty.
Once an accounting is filed, beneficiaries can object and challenge specific entries. If the court finds that assets are missing, expenses are improper, or fees are excessive, it can surcharge the trustee, meaning the trustee must personally repay losses to the trust. In serious cases, the trustee can be required to reimburse attorney fees and costs incurred to force proper reporting.
For putative beneficiaries, the path is less settled, but Barefoot and Hamlin may lead to the same practical endpoint: a potential order that the trustee must provide an accounting to the petitioner.
Trust Law Partners Will Fight For The Rights Of All Beneficiaries
Information is at the foundation of serious trust litigation. At Trust Law Partners LLP, we push hard for accountings and records at the front end of a case, whether our clients are current beneficiaries or so-called “putative” beneficiaries as described under Barefoot and Hamlin.
If you are a beneficiary who is being ignored, or an heir who has been written out by a suspicious trust or amendment, you may not have to accept “you are not a beneficiary” as the final answer.
Trust Law Partners will assert all available legal grounds to obtain the information you need to protect your rights.
Call Trust Law Partners today for a free consultation at 833-982-2079.