Trustee Loses Appeal Over Trust Challenge: December 16,2015 4th DCA renunciation of benefits rule & estoppel in trust contests

Uncategorized • Dec 18, 2015

With the use of revocable living trusts by Florida trust lawyers, it’s not that trust lawsuits in Palm Beach have increased. A recent 4th District Court of Appeal case from December 16, 2015 is a must read for all probate litigation attorneys Florida who deal with trust challenges and trust contests. Here is a copy of the appellate opinion so you can read it in its entirety: http://4dca.org/opinions/Dec.%202015/12-16-15/4D14-3461.op.pdf Do you know how to challenge or attack a living trust ? Do you know, if you are the trustee of the revocable trust, how to defend the trust from a trust contest if there are charges of undue influence ?

Can I Accept Trust Money if I Want to File a Trust Contest Florida?

Put another way, can you take money from the Boca Raton trustee if you are going to file a trust challenge Florida?
Well, to file a trust contest, that means you have to file a lawsuit
In your lawsuit, have your trust litigation law firm put in specific reasons why you believe that the trust document is not valid
Do you know the best way to file your Palm Beach trust lawsuit to overturn a trust amendment or family trust?
Was the trust, or the amendment that disinherits you, made at a time when the creator of the trust did not know what they were doing?
This is often referred to as arguing that the trust is not valid based upon lack of capacity, or lack of mental capacity
Do you know the best way to argue that the trust is not valid in a Palm Beach trust lawsuit?
Or, do you argue that the trust amendment which maybe decreased your inheritance from a prior trust document or amendment, was caused by someone who used undue influence on your mother or father when they signed the trust
How do I prove undue influence to win a trust challenge in Florida?
Well, remember that undue influence is a form of fraud, so you need to be specific
Who caused the undue influence if you believe someone used undue influence to make someone change a Florida trust?
Who contacted the Florida trust lawyer to draw up the trust amendment or papers?
Who paid for the new trust document which disinherits you or decreases what you get from your parent’s trust?
How was the undue influence “done” or performed and when was it done?

Understanding Trust Challenges in Florida Probate Court

Do you know how to file a trust appeal Florida?
Not only do you have to understand the Florida Trust Code, but also the rules of appellate procedure

So, the general rule is that you cannot accept money from a trustee on a Monday and then sue the trustee to overturn the trust on a Tuesday
Why?
Well there is a renunciation rule and an estoppel rule for trust lawsuits in Florida and there are three cases to read
One case is this December 16, 2015 trust appeal from Palm Beach, or I should say, Delray Beach probate court that went to the West Palm Beach Appeals Court
The appeals court which hears appeals for Palm Beach trust, estate and probate matters is the 4th District Court of Appeal on Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard, West Palm Beach.
Here is the link to the 4th DCA website to learn more about filing a probate appeal in Palm Beach: http://4dca.org/index4.shtml
The second case to read on the trust estoppel rule and renunciation rule is the Fintak case, 120 So. 3d 177 (Fla. 2nd DCA, 2013) and finally you should read the Barnett National Bank case 49 So. 2d 535 (Fla. 1950)
In this December 2015 trust appeal trust undue influence case, a beneficiary under many versions of the trust was trying to have two trust amendments declared invalid. This trust beneficiary had received some money or benefits from the trust that he was not trying to have declared invalid. Or, perhaps put a better way, he was trying to have two amendments invalidated. If the prior amendments were valid, and the last two trust amendments were invalid, he inherited money any way. So, why do you have to renounce or give back trust money if you inherit whether the last two amendments are valid or not valid?