Trusts and Estates
Smith v. Myers
Cite as C098169
Filed June 27, 2024; Cert. for Publ. July 10, 2024
Third District
By Erika J. Gasaway
Hopkins & Carley
www.hopkinscarley.com/
Headnote: Statute of Limitations – Claims Based on Decedent’s Promise to Make a Gift
Summary: The one year statute of limitations on claims arising from a decedent’s promise to make a distribution does not apply to claims for distribution under a valid trust amendment.
Nearly four years after the settlor’s death, beneficiaries of a trust amendment filed a petition pursuant to Probate Code section 17200 for an order confirming validity of the amendment and seeking removal of the trustee. The trustee filed a motion for summary adjudication on the grounds that the petition was barred by the one year statute of limitations in Probate Code section 366.3. The Probate Court denied the motion. The beneficiaries prevailed after a bench trial and the trustee appealed.
The appellate court affirmed. Section 366.3 applies to “a claim that arises from a promise or agreement with a decedent to distribution from an estate or trust or under another instrument.” In this case, the claim was not based on something the decedent promised or agreed to do. The claim was based on the amendment itself that required a distribution; the beneficiaries alleged the amendment was valid, so they were entitled to the distribution. The amendment was not a promise because the decedent was free to revoke or change the amendment while he was alive.