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If my sisters (trustee) name is on a bank account with my mother outside of trust can she legally spend retirement checks.
Anonymous5 views2 answers
both her and I have poa and are co trustees. all accounts were supposed to roll into the trust. she kept one account open and my mothers annuities and retirement checks went there. she has paid bills out of that account, but it has become a personal spending bonanza. I only found out recently about this.24,000( that I can prove) in spending on herself in a 24 month period. im concerned when I call her on it." my names on the account will suffice in allowing her to get away with it
It depends largely on how the account was set up. Keep in mind that there is a difference between someone who is a joint owner of an account with your mom or is simply a signer on an account owned by your mom.
A signer on your mom's account may have certain duties not to spend your mom's assets except for her benefit that a court may look favorably on if you try to recoup the funds your sister spent. If the account is a joint account, then both your mom and sister jointly own all of the assets in the account, meaning that your sister may have more flexibility in spending the money in that account for her own expenses.
As a preliminary step, my advice would be to check or examine how the bank account is currently titled.
Eric Jerome GoldTrusts AttorneyCalabasas, CACA licensed ·
As stated the form of account ownership is going to shed much light on your situation. While, at the sale time, your sister, as agent, in the existing power of attorney has a fiduciary obligation to act in mother's best interest and not self-deal. You should consider taking your "proof" and consulting with a local elder law attorney to review the specifics of your circumstances and devise a plan to move forward. You can try the Find a Lawyer tool or contact the county bar association for a lawyer referral.
