Residuary trust

The Supreme Court (SC) has ruled on a case about a special type of inheritance called "residuary trust", that is, when a person (the testator) leaves their assets to someone (the trustee, in this case his wife), but with the condition that, when she passed away, the remainder would go to other heirs (the residuary beneficiaries, who were the deceased's siblings).

The conflict arose because the wife, once her husband passed away, sold a property and opened several bank accounts with the money, but never distributed or settled that money as required by law for inheritances with community property. When she also passed away, the siblings claimed half of the value of the property and that money from the banks, considering that it should actually be part of the trust and that the widow had made improper use of the assets.

Legal discussions focused on the extent of the wife's powers as trustee, that is, whether she could freely dispose of the assets or only use them under certain conditions. The SC has made it clear that, although the will allowed the disposal of the assets, this is understood only for "onerous acts" (for example, selling the property and spending its price on the wife's reasonable needs), but not for giving away these assets without further ado. Additionally, if, after the sale, the money was not spent, the unused portion had to go directly to the residuary beneficiaries.

Furthermore, regarding the bank accounts opened after the husband's death, it has not been proven that the money belonged solely to the widow and the community property was not settled, it must be presumed to be community property and, therefore, at least half of it should also go to the siblings as part of the trust.

In inheritance disputes, our professionals can advise you in the defense of your claims and rights.