Living Trusts, Probate Court Duties in Safeguarding Estates Reviewed

The recent Times disclosures that Orange County attorney James Gunderson has become the recipient of millions of dollars from the estates of senior citizens whose wills he prepared may be the tip of an enormous iceberg.

Living Trusts, which are confidential relationships between the creator of the trust and the trustee, are now the estate planning tool of choice for most seniors. This very confidentiality greatly increases the likelihood that such abuses will remain undetected.

Positive steps that can thwart unethical behavior of a trustee include:

1. Have your trust reviewed by an independent attorney of unquestioned integrity or by an experienced trust officer.

2. Select a bank or a trust company as your trustee, or successor trustee. Corporate trustees are alert to such shenanigans, are subject to strict regulation and are regularly inspected by bank examiners.

ROBERT LAGERQUIST

Dana Point