Thursday, May 21, 2009

Kentucky Supreme Court on Trustee Disclosure

Kentucky Supreme Court Rules Trustee Disclosure Proper:
"The Kentucky Supreme Court . . . is raising eyebrows with a recent ruling that says the bank trustee of a living trust was right to tell a group of charities they had been cut from an elderly woman's will." See Dale Arden, GETTING PERSONAL: Living Trusts Can Offer Up Secrets, The Wall Street Journal, May 13, 2009, discussing JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. v. Longmeyer, 2005-SC-000313-DG, Feb. 17, 2009.
The disclosure prompted lawsuits from the disinherited, and presumably somewhat disgruntled, beneficiaries. While the ruling raises some interesting questions, it reinforces the need to address privacy issues when creating a living trust or a will.