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Courts Do Not Agree on the History and Meaning of California Probate Code Section 15402
California Trusts and Estates Quarterly - Volume 28, Issue 2
Amending revocable trust instruments is a daily occurrence for most lawyers focusing their practices on trusts and estates. So common and so expected are such trust amendments, lawyers routinely include provisions in revocable trust instruments that state the procedure by which those trust instruments may be amended. Usually, the amendment procedure stated in the trust instrument is followed. Disputes about the validity of those trust amendments usually do not include controversy over the procedure by which the trust amendments are made. Accordingly, the procedure by which a revocable trust instrument is amended appears to be, for many, almost laughably easy and not meritorious of discussion.
However, trust amendments do not always comply with the amendment procedure set forth in the trust instrument. When a trust amendment fails to comply with the amendment procedure set forth in the trust instrument (“nonconforming trust amendment”), the nonconforming trust amendment is open to challenge as being invalid for that failure. In adjudicating a challenge made to the validity of a nonconforming trust amendment, the courts look to California Probate Code section 15402,01 which sets forth the procedure for determining whether a trust instrument’s stated amendment procedure is effectively the exclusive procedure for amending the trust instrument. Courts have considered this issue in several cases. As discussed below, a split has developed in the Court of Appeal as to the correct interpretation of section 15402, and the California Supreme Court is now considering this issue. A brief review of sections 15402 and 15401 is helpful in understanding these cases.
1 Self-Study Credit
Jennifer L. Campbell
For over 30 years, Ms. Campbell has concentrated her practice in the trusts and estates area, focusing on the administration of trusts and estates and estate planning. Ms. Campbell routinely advises and assists individuals and corporate fiduciaries with a myriad of matters including constructing estate plans, fiduciary legal risk management, trust funding, trust distributions, preparing estate and gift tax returns, and negotiating and drafting settlement agreements. Ms. Campbell brings a unique insight to every matter she handles, reflecting her extensive practice both in law firms and in financial institutions’ legal departments. Most recently, she served as Assistant General Counsel of MUFG Union Bank, where she served as Union Bank’s sole fiduciary lawyer, and as Managing Counsel, Wealth Management at BNY Mellon/The Bank of New York Mellon. Before joining BNY Mellon’s in-house department, Ms. Campbell practiced at Hoffman, Sabban & Watenmaker in Los Angeles. Ms. Campbell is a past co-chair of the Beverly Hills Bar Association Trusts and Estates Executive Committee. Ms. Campbell has received Martindale-Hubbell’s highest peer-reviewed rating for professional excellence (“A-V Preeminent”). and professional achievement (“Distinguished”) for 20 years.
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