RMO, LLP
By Scott Rahn
Updated: October 23rd, 2025
In a perfect world, trustees would never abuse their position for personal gain, but it is an unfortunately an all-too-common occurrence.
If you are the beneficiary of a trust, you already know how much power is wielded by a trustee. In many cases, trustees have privileged access to, and authority over, vast reserves of valuable assets intended to benefit the beneficiaries.
Trustees have many fiduciary duties under the law, and failing to live up to any of them may provide grounds for a beneficiary to file a lawsuit.
Trustee malfeasance refers to any type of negligent, self-serving, erroneous, or retaliatory conduct committed by the trustee of a trust resulting in harm to trust assets or beneficiaries. This is a broad term encompassing many different types of offenses, both intentional and unintentional.
An experienced trust litigation attorney —familiar with the county probate court, in the county where the trust is being administered— can help assess whether or not you have grounds to sue for trustee negligence, mismanagement, fraud or malfeasance.
