Protection of Trust Information in Divorce

Many otherwise private financial matters can quickly become public in divorce proceedings. However, trusts are often used to ensure privacy and often include information on multiple individuals. In a California divorce case, the wife requested family trust documents from her husband. The trial court granted the husband’s protective order, and ruled that only information directly related to the husband was discoverable and that third party and general trust asset information were not to be turned over to the wife, and thus would be redacted.

In In re Marriage of Williamson, The Second District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court’s grant of the protective order, limitations of required disclosure of the trust information, and the protection of third party privacy.

See Luke Lantta, How Much Information About A Trust Must Be Disclosed In A Divorce?, Bryan Cave, Oct. 1, 2014.

Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.