Estate of Lindstrom

In Estate of Lindstrom (1987) 191 Cal. App. 3d 375, decedent's widow executed a revocable inter vivos trust naming Crocker National Bank as trustee and a pour-over will giving all of her estate, not already in the trust, to the trustee. Decedent, who was childless, was the lifetime beneficiary of all trust income and principal. The trust named a number of her friends as remainder beneficiaries. Between 1982 and her death in 1984, decedent twice attempted to change the trustee. She also executed two codicils to her will and three amendments to her inter vivos trust. Prior to her death, decedent executed a new will revoking all former wills. After a lengthy dispute among various beneficiaries, the court admitted decedent's 1984 will to probate and directed the trustee to divide her trust and estate assets into two parts: Alaska property and California property. The court further instructed the trustee to distribute the former category of property in equal shares to her seven heirs-at-law and the latter category of property to the five devisees in her 1984 will and to the sole trust remainderman who had not joined any contest. Several of decedent's contesting trust remaindermen appealed, contending the trial court improperly expanded application of the in terrorem clause of the will to cover the trust. The Second District Court of Appeal agreed and reversed the judgment in part, holding a will cannot modify or revoke an inter vivos trust absent specific conformance with the amendment/revocation provisions of the trust.