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Tim King & Michael Hjelmstad Salem-News.com The Probate Code strictly forbids specific commingling of funds. (RIVERSIDE, Calif.) – In a hearing this week in Riverside Superior Court, a local attorney, Toni Eggebraaten, cited a criminal act committed by her in conjunction with her client, The Riverside Public Guardian’s office, as a reason for not having to abide by the law mandating she reveal accountings to a beneficiary of a Trust.
In a statement worthy of Franz Kafka’s absurdist classic novel, The Trial, Eggebraaten baldly stated that she pooled the funds in the Phelan Family Trust with “other estates” managed by the Public Guardian’s office as a reason for not supplying the bank statements to a beneficiary.
The Probate Code strictly forbids such commingling of funds.
The request for discovery was made by Janet Phelan, after she noted that Eggebraaten’s accountings were not consistent with the minimal discovery that the attorney provided. Eggebraaten had supplied cancelled checks with payee, endorsement and bank cancellation information redacted (blacked out) but refused to submit the bank statements, which are necessary to reconcile the account.
Phelan has stated that there appears to be fraud and possible embezzlement of funds. Eggebraaten has replied that since she pooled the Phelan Trust monies with other accounts, it would violate the privacy of those other estate beneficiaries receiving funds from the pooled account if she were to abide by discovery laws and turn these over to Janet Phelan.
Phelan promptly informed the Judge, Thomas Cahraman, of the violation of law by Eggebraaten but Cahraman did not respond. Phelan had already issued subpoenas for the bank records, which were served on the financial institutions last week and states that a continuance is necessary due to the fact that there are active subpoenas.
In 2009, Phelan, who is an investigative reporter, broke a story in the San Bernardino County Sentinel which stated that a number of Inland Empire judges had questionable financial transactions keyed to their home loans, and were possibly laundering bribes and pay-offs through these loans. At that time, Judge Cahraman was the Presiding Judge of Riverside County. Cahraman subsequently pulled three judges whose loan history was questioned off the Phelan Trust case, although he issued an angry and accusatory letter to Phelan, refusing to investigate the loans and citing Phelan as making things difficult in the court system.
When first contacted by Salem-News.com, attorney Tony Eggebratten said, “I don’t feel comfortable discussing the details of this trust with you…” She went on to say, “The trust pays for the benefit of each a monthly stipend of $2500; if Janet told us to make a direct deposit into her account, we would. If you start with the beginning balance, we show every expense that we pay.”
Eggebratten contends that her actions were reasonable and credible according to the law. “Just do the math. Take the starting balance, documented income, subtract the expenses, it all comes out to the balance we have on hand.”
Phelan responded, “Toni Eggebraaten’s response failed to address the issues of illegally pooled accounts. Nor does it answer the questions raised by her attorney’s time records, which indicate that she most likely has falsified the accountings.”
Cahraman has taken the issue of the continuance under consideration and will be issuing a decision shortly.
No action appears to have been taken on the violation of law by Toni Eggebraaten and the Public Guardian’s office.
To the knowledge of this reporter, this is the first time that an attorney has claimed that she is not bound by the law due to her committing a prior illegal act.