My MIL passed away last month. Five parties are part of the trust. Instead of selling the household items and dividing the total sum according to the percentages, one party wants to keep it all and pay the total sum to the rest of the beneficiaries. If we can agree to a total value of the items, is that value legally acceptable? The trustee seems to think the only way to determine the value is to have an estate sale.
Answer
A trustee owes a fiduciary duty to all beneficiaries. If all beneficiaries want to stipulate to a value and hold the Trustee harmless, that could be acceptable. The trustee should have an attorney prepare any documentation. The trustee could also get an appraisal and use that value, which seems a better way to proceed.
Answer
So long as all beneficairies agree to the division, there is no reason it could not not be done the way described. When a non proportionate transfer of this inature is done, it is usual for an agreement to be drafted and sighed by all parties. Such an agreement could include a release of claims against the trustee for proceeding pursuant to the direction of the parties.
Answer
As stated above, the trustee owes a fiduciary duty to all of the beneficiaries. If each beneficiary agrees to the value of the trust estate and distribution schedule, the trustee can act in a manner the beneficiaries agree to. However, the trustee is the ultimate decider of how the estate will be treated and valued. So, if one beneficiary disagrees with the value or pay-out scale, the trustee will need to decide what is in the best interests of the beneficiaries and how to place a value on the trust assets.
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