My Mothers family trust where all her sisters and herself were given property and a home in the hills of NC for their life . This is a last ...

Question

My Mothers family trust where all her sisters and herself were given property and a home in the hills of NC for their life . This is a last man standing trust with trustee assigned to the trust. My cousin not a trustee or his mother a trustee of the trust pulled a permit and signed his name as owner of said home . Now a suit has already been started and ejection notice will be given soon. I would like to know what laws have been broken for signing a permit as owner and not being a owner of said property. He took a very old home rustic and historic and gutted it. None of the trustee gave permission for him to do what he did .I would like to know if a criminal law as been broken for fraud and what else .What type of penalty could be assigned to him if found guilty. Thank You in advance !

Answer

You don't ask a sensible question. No attorney is going to answer you without first reviewing the language in the trust and the documents allegedly signed by the relatives. Obviously, if the trust owns the property and someone who is not a trustee falsely signed documents, then a forgery has occurred and criminal charges can be filed. It is impossible to know what the penalties will be as they will vary depending on if its a felony or misdemeanor and its grade (there are different classes with some being more severe than others). Also, prior criminal history would factor in to any punishment. Such a question should be directed at criminal law attorneys who are better versed in the criminal laws. It would not take a very imaginative prosecutor to dream up more potential crimes besides forgery but it would depend on the exact circumstances.

Since a lawsuit has been filed, I suggest you speak with attorney handling the case for the trustee and other beneficiaries if you are one of the beneficiaries as he/she will be most familiar with the facts.