What are a child’s rights to review a living parent’s Will/Trust?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What are a child’s rights to review a living parent’s Will/Trust?
My wife of 46 years is the oldest child having 3 other siblings. Her mother died 9 years ago and her father is in failing health at age 92. The 3rd child/brother is 10 years younger and is apparently either the executor alone or with his sister who is 2 years younger then my wife. We have never seen the Will or Trust, have no knowledge of how his finances have been overseen the past 10 years and are very suspicious of their seemingly “on the same page” actions. Does my wife have any right when it comes to the Will/Trust. Can we see it? Can we legally see the financial transactions of the past?
Asked on June 19, 2014 under Estate Planning, Oregon
Answers:
M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 9 years ago | Contributor
Generally speaking, your wife has no right to view the Will or Trust until she becomes a beneficiary of the estate. But she does have a right to object to the Will or the management of the trust and trust assets when the time comes. I would speak with an attorney in the state in which her Father resides about the time constraints involved and her rights to request a fiduciary accounting if she believes that they dissipated assets or even if they in some way unduly influenced her Father. Good luck.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.