Cases

The trustee of the Six Flags Claims Trust, petitioned the probate court seeking instructions to disburse nearly $45 million in compensation to himself, counsel for the Claims Trust, and to a number of others.  A number of dissenting beneficiaries filed more than 20 objections to the petition, two of which were sustained by the trial court after a 16-day bench trial.  Finding the beneficiaries’ consent had been tainted by misrepresentations contained in the solicitation, the court concluded the trustee had breached his fiduciary duty to the beneficiaries and denied the petition.

The Court of Appeal, Second District, Division 7, reversed the trial court’s denial of the petition as to the trustee’s compensation but affirmed the court’s denial of the trustee’s counsel’s compensation as well as its denial of the requests for attorney fees.