How To Recover Stolen Inheritance in California

Stewart R. Albertson | January 19, 2023 | Abused Beneficiary

One of the primary ways wealth is built in our society is for one generation to pass on money and property to the next. A stolen inheritance can jeopardize your financial future and possibly your children’s future.

In the event that someone misappropriated money or other assets you expected to inherit, legal actions can be taken. If you can gather sufficient evidence showing that your inheritance has been stolen, a lawyer specializing in probate law can submit a restitution order. In California, you don’t have to try to recover a stolen inheritance on your own. The experienced trust and will inheritance lawyers of Albertson & Davidson, LLP, are available to fight for your inheritance. We are aggressive trial attorneys in California who focus solely on litigating these types of complex cases. Our motto describes our approach – “We stand. We fight. We win.”

What Is Considered Inheritance Theft?

Inheritance is typically conveyed through a will or trust. A will directs assets to heirs of a deceased individual’s estate. A trust provides assets to named beneficiaries of the trust. The executor of a will and the trustee in charge of administering a trust both have certain powers that can be abused.

Many cases of inheritance theft center on the executor of a will or the trustee in charge of a trust. Inheritance theft may take the form of:

Failing to report and unlawfully taking assets of the deceased’s estate
Diverting assets of a trust for a trustee’s own use or benefit
Charging excessive fees for services as an executor or trustee
Abusing power of attorney to divert assets

In other cases, a family member or a trusted caretaker of an elderly family member may use undue influence to misdirect assets that should be part of your inheritance. This may be possible due to:

Coercion or undue influence used to force changes to a will or trust
Fraud or forgery related to the content of a will or trust documents, property titles, or deeds
Physical theft of assets, such as cash, jewelry, art, or other valuables
Undocumented loans leaving no means of recouping money
Access to financial accounts

You may need to file a trust contest to challenge a trust that has been amended to leave all assets to a caretaker or one adult child at the expense of the other adult children. The specific facts of the individual situation will dictate the best approach.

How Do I Prove Inheritance Theft?

Proving inheritance theft can be challenging. It is helpful to work with an attorney who understands the types of evidence to seek. It may involve compiling documents that show that assets were improperly transferred or terms of a document were changed.

For example:

Proving undue influence or coercion would require medical records showing the account holder’s weakened cognitive condition. This would be accompanied by testimony about the relationship between your ill family member and the person using undue influence to show access to accounts and assets.
If there are two versions of a will, you might challenge the contents of the later document and use medical records to show that it was drafted after the deceased was diagnosed with dementia or other cognitive issues.
To prove the abuse of a financial power of attorney after the account owner’s death, you would show the date of the transaction and the death certificate proving the date of the account owner’s death.
If an estate administrator or executor was suspected of over-charging the estate for fees or expenses or of stealing from the estate’s accounts, you might obtain a court order for an independent audit of the estate assets, which could identify an improper money flow.

Albertson & Davidson is ready to help you fight for your inheritance.

Questions About Inheritance Theft and How to Answer Them

Among the basic questions you need to address as part of a legal claim are:

Who is suspected of inheritance theft? If you have been able to identify a loss, you probably have some ideas about who had access and the opportunity to carry out the theft. If you suspected an executor of a will, then you would petition the probate court to remove and replace the executor or personal representative of the estate. If a beneficiary/heir or a third person is suspected of inheritance theft, the personal representative has the legal standing to petition the court to compel them to produce information relating to the property allegedly misappropriated and, if theft is proven, to demand its return.
What was stolen? Theft from bank accounts and investment accounts is most easily tracked because account records will show a money transfer or beneficiary change. However, you would need a court order to access accounts not held in your name. Money improperly taken from an estate by the executor or charged to the estate may be identified based on the initial accounting of all estate assets and additional accounting records required by the probate court. Personal property that must be registered, such as vehicles and real estate, can also be traced through public records. It is more difficult to trace cash or other personal property.
When was it stolen? Account transactions, deeds, and vehicle registrations are dated, so the timing of a transfer may be compared to medical records (noting a mental decline) and records or testimony about when an individual assumed a role of confidence and/or access to assets.

How Do I Recover Assets Lost to Inheritance Theft?

Recovering a stolen inheritance will require filing a lawsuit against the alleged thief with the help of an experienced trust and will inheritance lawyer. The skilled attorneys at Albertson & Davidson can gather evidence of inheritance theft and file a lawsuit in the California probate court stating the basis for challenging the trust or will or its administration.

If the personal representative of an estate is suspected of theft while a will is in probate, any interested person, such as a beneficiary or creditor, can petition the probate court to remove the personal representative and nominate a replacement. You can request that the personal representative be restrained from committing further acts pending the resolution of your petition.

You must be an interested party to file a lawsuit contesting the terms of a will or trust in California.

If a will or trust contest is successful, the court will invalidate the will or trust or set aside a discredited amendment to the will or trust. If you have already lost money or other assets, the court should order your losses returned to you. A court can also remove a trustee or executor for breach of trust.

Contact a California Inheritance Theft Litigation Attorney

The attorneys at Albertson & Davidson, LLP help individuals and families in California work through disputes involving contested wills and trusts, including cases of inheritance theft. Founding attorneys Stewart Albertson and Keith Davidson at Albertson & Davidson LLP are trial lawyers who focus on trust and estate litigation.

Contact us for a free, no-obligation review of your inheritance issue and your legal options. Our attorneys can review the situation and discuss whether a lawsuit is appropriate in your case. We handle inheritance theft litigation on a contingency fee basis. We only charge legal fees if we recover money for you. You can obtain skilled legal representation without any upfront costs.